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https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/auto/auto-news/escorts-reports-21-increase-in-total-tractor-sales-at-10851-units-in-june/articleshow/76724496.cms | Farm equipment and engineering major Escorts Ltd on Wednesday reported 21.1 per cent increase in total tractor sales at 10,851 units in June. The company had sold 8,960 units in the same month last year, Escorts Ltd said in a regulatory filing.Domestic tractor sales were at 10,623 units in the month under review, as against 8,648 units in the year-ago month, a growth of 22.8 per cent, it added. Exports during June, however, declined 26.9 per cent at 228 units as compared to 312 units in the year-ago period."We have seen unprecedented demand in this month. The industry is expected to grow significantly backed by pent-up demand of the lockdown period, better farmer sentiment due to good monsoon prediction reflected in better than normal Kharif sowing, better rural cash flows owing to record crop output and crop prices, and reasonably good availability of retail finance," the company said. The industry is witnessing widespread growth in almost all markets barring one or two, it added."Our inventory levels, both with the company and with channel have been lowest ever. After necessary permissions, we were able to run our factories in multiple shifts to achieve production at about 90 per cent of the capacity," Escorts said. Supply chain situation, though better than before, continues to remain volatile, it added. | Escorts reports 21.1 per cent increase in tractor sales in June. the company had sold 8,960 units in the same month last year. exports during June decline 26.9 per cent. the industry is witnessing widespread growth in almost all markets. a lockdown period has boosted demand. a spokesman for the company says the supply chain is "very volatile" | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/union-budget-2020/expectations/union-budget-2020-key-7-things-to-watch-out-for/story/395153.html | In the run up to Union Budget 2020, the common man is expecting finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman to announce some relief in the form of tax cuts, low-interest rates etc. Sitharaman during one of her earlier interviews had even hinted at giving relaxation to individuals in the form of tax cuts.
Here are the top 7 things the Aam Aadmi (common man) expects from the Modi govt:
1. Personal tax cut: The common man can expects the government to announce an increase in income tax exemption limit from existing Rs 2.5 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, that means a tax rate revision to 10% for individuals with taxable income over Rs 5 lakh and up to Rs 10 lakh. Similarly, a 20% tax rate revision for individuals earning over Rs 10 lakh and up to Rs 20 lakh and 30% for income above Rs 20 lakh. Meanwhile, there is also the expectation that the government will lower the highest tax slab rate from the current 30% to 25%, i.e., increase the corresponding limit from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. This relief will leave more (disposable) income in the hands of the people thereby leading to more demand for products and services, which will eventually lead to more production and churn in economic activity. This announcement is long overdue and is number on common man's wish list.
FULL COVERAGE: Union Budget 2020
2. Controlled consumer inflation: Another way in which the government can help the common man is by ensuring that inflation doesn't rise beyond a level. A 7.5% rate of consumer price inflation (CPI) is a very high rate of inflation largely because of the high prices of the vegetables and fruits in the markets. If the government can ensure the prices stay within limits, that would be a huge incentive for the common man.
3. Increased tax benefits on housing schemes: Housing is a critical need. The government has provided tax benefits on affordable housing in the past too. In the last budget, FM Sitharaman announced a Rs 1.5 lakh tax exemption to affordable houses bought under Rs 45 lakh. It is expected that this exemption limit could be raised to Rs 75 lakh this time because an individual cannot buy an affordable house under Rs 45 lakh in large metros especially in Delhi and Mumbai.
4. Low GST on consumer durables and FMCG products: The other major expectation of the common man and the middle class is that the prices of items of daily use should be brought down to make them affordable, especially consumer durables and some FMCG products. There is also a big expectation that GST rates on some of these items would be rationalised and brought down to aid consumption.
Also read: Budget 2020 Date: When is Union Budget, Expectations from Modi govt, Time, where to watch
5. Low-interest rates: Although this doesn't relate directly to the budget, but if the government can ensure that the interest rates are brought down for the common man, it will be a major boost to consumption in the economy. Interest rates are still high particularly those of private sector banks and the entire repo rate reduction by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has still not been passed by the banks to the consumer as well as to the industry. About 1% of repo rate still remains untransferred to the consumer as far as bringing down the rates are concerned
6. Increase in Section 80C deduction limit: The common man also expects FM Sitharaman to increase the deduction limit under Section 8C of the Income-Tax Act, 1961. The current cap stands at Rs 1.5 lakh and doesn't leave much room for the taxpayers to broaden their investment portfolio. The expectation is that this limit (of Rs 1.5 lakh) should be increased to at least Rs 2.5 lakh in order to boost investment in several tax-saving schemes such as personal provident fund (PPF), fixed deposits, home loan repayment, insurance etc. This will leave more disposable income in the hands of individuals, thereby encouraging them to channelise their long-term savings into the capital markets.
7. Raise tax deduction limit on health insurance premium: People need a higher insurance cover on account of increasing healthcare costs. Hence, the common man expects FM Sitharaman to increase the deduction limit for medical insurance premium under Section 80D to at least Rs 50,000 from Rs 25,000 for self and family as well as for senior citizens dependent parents to a minimum Rs 75,000 from Rs 50,000.
Also read: FM Nirmala Sitharaman likely to present 'feel good' Budget; India may see income tax cut, sops for corporate sector | common man expects government to announce tax cuts, low-interest rates etc.. government will lower highest tax slab rate from 30% to 25%. controlled consumer inflation will be key to ensuring inflation doesn't rise. a low GST on consumer durables and FMCG products will be key. a low GST on consumer durables and FMCG products will be key. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/trends/entertainment/now-movies-from-streaming-service-mubi-to-feature-in-pvr-theatres-near-you-4680291.html | live bse live
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It is a long-standing debate whether OTTs will kill the theatre business in India. But it looks like multiplex chain operator PVR and UK-headquartered MUBI, a streaming service dedicated to films only, think otherwise.
Both the players have partnered to launch the cinema-going initiative called MUBI GO in India on November 27.
As part of a MUBI subscription, members will now receive one complimentary ticket every week to see a film that has been hand-picked by MUBI, in any PVR Cinema, via the MUBI GO app. MUBI GO users will be able to redeem tickets for the selected films at any PVR cinema across India. The same will be valid in the classic seat category at all mainstream auditoriums. The MUBI GO app will list PVR cinema schedules for the current ‘Film of the Week’, based on user locations.
For MUBI, subscription plans include an introductory price of Rs 199 for the first three months. After that, users will have to pay Rs 499 a month or Rs 4,788 for 12 months.
Pricing could be a matter of concern for MUBI, especially if it is looking to go deeper and wider in India. Even Netflix brought down its prices by launching its mobile-only plan for Rs 199 a month.
With MUBI planning to enter regional markets in the next one year, pricing will be a key factor for the platform to consider.
But when it comes to content addition on its platform, it has signed deals with the National Film Archive of India, Shemaroo and is ready to shell out money as it is betting on India.
Speaking to Moneycontrol on the sidelines of the event, Efe Cakarel, Founder and CEO of MUBI, said, "In the beginning of our India journey we will be pumping in money to buy film titles. Globally, we more than doubled our revenue and we are cash-flow positive. It is a healthy business and generating profits. Hence, MUBI can invest in India."
Plus, MUBI will also step into the production side business in India, after having done the same in the US and Europe.
"We have to get into production in the long run. We have to produce our own movies. What drives our business is newer films on our platform," Cakarel added.
Currently, MUBI has two segments --- MUBI World that offers international films and its recent addition called MUBI India which is dedicated to Indian cinema.
Cakarel, who will be travelling to Chennai to know more about the southern film market, hopes to start a new channel just for Tamil films.
On the back of strong content, Cakarel expects to register a user base of up to two million in the span of two years.
In addition, Kamal Gianchadani, CEO, PVR Pictures, said that while initially the top 10 cities will be the main market for MUBI, the platform will also penetrate smaller towns.
While MUBI has a lot to benefit from PVR, a question that remains is how will the new partnership prove fruitful for PVR?
According to Gianchadani, OTT has not been cannibalising negative effect on cinema.
"Last year was the biggest year in terms of box office for cinema and this year is turning out to be record breaking. In fact, OTT has become positive cycle. OTT is another revenue stream. Producers are making money and they in turn are making bigger and better films," he said.
He also pointed out another important fact that in the film business in India, 60 percent of the revenue is coming from theatres, which are growing in India. Hence, OTTs are no threat and they will co-exist with cinema. | MUBI GO app will list cinema schedules for current 'Film of the Week'. members will receive one complimentary ticket every week to see a film hand-picked by MUBI, in any PVR cinema across india. MUBI has signed deals with the National Film Archive of India, shemaroo and is ready to shell out money as it is betting on India. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/nikkei-edges-up-to-new-27-year-high-as-weaker-yen-fans-earnings-hopes/articleshow/66039531.cms | TOKYO: Japan's Nikkei edged up to a fresh 27-year high on Tuesday, building on recent strength thanks to upbeat earnings hopes, while Ono Pharmaceutical surged on news that a Nobel Prize was awarded to researchers for a cancer-fighting method used in its drug Opdivo.The Nikkei share average ended 0.1 per cent higher at 24,270.62, hovering at levels not seen since November 1991.The gains in the benchmark have been underpinned by the prospect of stronger corporate earnings on the back of a weaker yen. The benchmark index has comfortably stayed above the 24,000-line since last Friday.The Nikkei rallied 5.5 per cent in September, and its sharp gains in the short-period of time make the market prone to profit-taking, but the underlining mood remains positive, traders said."Investors take heart from the global economy's strength and prospects for brighter earnings forecasts as they start reporting earnings later this month," said Takuya Takahashi, a strategist at Daiwa Securities.While many companies based their dollar-yen assumptions at around 105-107 this fiscal year, the current levels are boosting hopes that manufacturers, which export their goods overseas, will raise their annual earnings forecasts, he said.The dollar surged to as high as 114.06 yen in the previous session, its strongest since November last year, before trading flat at 113.77 yen on Tuesday.Exporters got a boost, with Toyota Motor Corp rising 1.6 per cent, Honda Motor Co <7267.T. adding 1.5 per cent, while Panasonic Corp soaring 2.7 per cent.Shares of Ono Pharmaceutical Co jumped as much as 6.9 per cent to hit 3,430 yen, the highest level since August 2016, before ending up 3.1 per cent on news that a Nobel Prize was awarded to researchers for a cancer-fighting method used in Opdivo, a drug it co-developed with Bristol-Myers Squibb Co .On the weak side, discount clothing chain Shimamura Co tumbled 8.2 per cent after the company revised lower its earnings forecast for the year ending February 2019. It now expects a net profit of 27.3 billion yen, down from previously forecast 35 billion yen.The broader Topix was up 0.3 per cent at 1,824.03. | the benchmark index has comfortably stayed above the 24,000-line since last Friday. the dollar surged to 114.06 yen in the previous session, its strongest since last year. shares of ono pharmaceutical surged on news that a Nobel prize was awarded to researchers. discount clothing chain Shimamura Co tumbled 8.2 per cent after it revised lower its earnings forecast. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/aye-finance-this-startup-claims-to-have-grown-350-annually-plans-pan-india-expansion/1356402/ | Fintech player AYE Finance was founded in 2014 by Sanjay Sharma and Vikram Jetley to transform micro and small scale enterprise lending in India. Four years into its existence, the start-up claims to have grown at an amazing compounded annual rate of over 350% in the last three years.“We will continue to grow at a rate of 100% in the next two years,” said Sanjay Sharma, MD & CEO, Aye Finance.
To fuel this growth, Aye Finance plans to open new branches, service more business clusters and become a pan-India organisation. “We currently have over 100 branches spread across 11 states. We plan to increase our presence to 175 branches in the next two years. Our loan book would have crossed `2,500 crore by then,” Sharma said.
As per data released by MUDRA, there are over 50 million micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, collectively facing a credit deficit of nearly 3 trillion. The banks and financial institutions have often steered cleared of this sector, owing to various reasons such as a lack of proper documentation and collaterals, small ticket-size of loans, unreliable cash-flows and more. MSMEs, on the other hand lack the sophisticated understanding and wherewithal required to access formal financing facilities and often, have to settle for unregulated individual lenders, charging inflated interest rates.
“We started Aye Finance with a vision to disrupt this status quo and bring these micro and small ventures under the folds of organised lending. By offering affordable and adequate credit line for the working capital and fixed capital needs of these businesses, we contribute towards their growth and sustainability,” he said.
Having seen consumer lending as a banker during the last 30 years, Sharma said that it was clear to him that for the Indian economy to make a transition to the next level, it was necessary to uplift the 60 million unorganised micro enterprises whose credit needs had historically been ignored by the formal lending channels.
Recalling the genesis of the company, Sharma said a serendipitous meeting with Vikram got the grand plan moving. “Vikram had worked with me in his first job at HDFC Bank. It so happened that he had moved out of his job in the MFI industry and was in search of doing something meaningful and here was I looking for an experienced hand to share in my dream company. The year was 2013, India was emerging unscathed from the chaos in the financial markets in the world and it was the best of times to boldly start a financing business,” he said. “Soon we had a small core founding team of believers in the shared dream. In those defining days, there was not much of a business plan to guide us other than our firm belief that Aye was to be the most admired leader among the finance businesses providing finance to micro businesses in India. And today, four years in to the journey, we are already on our way to achieving that dream having disbursed over `850 crore to over 65,000 businesses,” he said.
The Gurugram-headquartered start-up had raised `248 crore from four rounds of equity (seed, Series A, Series B and Series C). In June it raised Rs 147 crore in Series C and became the first finance company in India to receive equity investment from CapitalG (erstwhile Google Capital). “Our other investors are also globally renowned private equity investors—SAIF Partners, Accion, and LGT,” he said.
Aye Finance had raised over Rs 650 crore in debt since inception. It has debt lines from leading Indian banks as well as from large NBFCs and from reputed foreign financial institutions. It also raised money through securitisation and issuance of bonds in the Indian markets.
On plans for further raising of funds, he said: “Our plan is to support the growth, expansion and longevity of the Indian MSMEs and bring a larger number of these businesses into the folds of organised lending for which we will continue to raise both debt and equity funds.”
Asked what he thinks about strategic tie-ups to grow the business, Sharma said, “While we are comfortable carrying the loans on our books, we have raised capital through securitisation of our portfolio and we will be open to collaboration with banks and financial institutions in the future as well.” | AYE Finance was founded in 2014 by Sanjay Sharma and Vikram Jetley. the start-up claims to have grown at an amazing compounded annual rate of over 350% in the last three years. to fuel this growth, Aye Finance plans to open new branches, service more business clusters and become a pan-India organisation. over 50 million micro, small and medium-sized enterprises collectively facing a credit deficit of nearly 3 trillion. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/gautam-adani-says-indian-economy-will-bounce-back-from-lows-inflicted-by-covid-19/articleshow/75160407.cms | New Delhi: As the Covid-19 pandemic tests the patience and hope of a 1.3-billion strong country asked to stay at home, Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani penned an article highlighting how the disease helped people rediscover hope, goodness and love for each other.“However [sic.] alarming the post-Coronavirus world might seem to appear, it does not pull me down. Instead, by looking around I get great hope and confidence to bounce back,” he said in an article published on professional networking website LinkedIn on Wednesday.Adani mentioned the stories of Minal Bhonsale, the virologist who headed the project at Pune-based MyLab Discovery Solutions that developed the first indigenous Coronovirus testing kits in India and Naveen MS, a civil service aspirant who took up the responsibility of creating awareness and dispelling myths on Coronavirus among rural communities in Karnataka.“Hundreds of such incredible stories that demonstrate resilience, hope, and power of the human spirit are unfolding around us every day,” he said.He also told the story of a team of engineers at Adani Port in Vizag that devised a sanitised water shower for all to use within four hours.“You need not look too far to get inspired,” he said, talking about people who were collecting essentials for the underprivileged during the lockdown. “These are common people leading humble lives but what makes them extraordinary is their intent to care for others.”Domestic helps, daily wage earners and scores of people who earned their living by doing odd-jobs were being looked after by not just the government, large corporations or charitable organisations, but by common people living around them, he wrote adding that there are virtual groups of animal lovers who were feeding strays and ensuring that they find safe shelter.“I don’t think this collective goodness and love for each other has erupted suddenly. It was always there within us. The COVID19 crisis has only presented an opportunity for us to reflect upon this feeling of compassion and worked as a trigger to unite people.” | adani chairman penned an article highlighting how the disease helped people rediscover hope. he said: "by looking around I get great hope and confidence to bounce back" he mentioned the stories of minal Bhonsale, who developed the first indigenous coronovirus testing kits in india. he also mentioned a team of engineers at Adani Port in Vizag that devised a sanitised water shower for all to use within four hours. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/creating-close-to-50000-seasonal-jobs-says-amazon-india/articleshow/75889324.cms | Amazon
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BENGALURU: E-commerce majorIndia on Friday said it will add 50,000 'seasonal' or temporary roles to meet the surge in online demand for products, particularly from those most vulnerable to being out in public in the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic The 50,000 seasonal roles will be across its warehousing and delivery network, and the move comes at a time when economic activities and e-commerce operations are slowly chugging back to life outside containment zones, as the country eyes a staggered exit from lockdown , with fewer curbs.The opening of seasonal roles atIndia also comes amid the spate of layoffs by tech-led companies like Zomato, Swiggy, ShareChat, Ola and some others over the past few days.India today announced that it has opened close to 50,000 seasonal roles to meet the surge in demand from people relying on's service, particularly those most vulnerable to being out in public."This will be a variety of roles in their fulfilment centres and delivery network including part-time flexible work opportunities as independent contractors withFlex," the company said in a statement.They will join other thousands of associates acrossIndia's fulfilment and delivery network and assist them to pick, pack, ship and deliver customers' orders more efficiently, it said."As India continues to maintain social distancing to fight the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic,India firmly believes it has a unique role to play providing a critical service for the community; to help them get the items they need for their families without leaving their homes," it said.Akhil Saxena, Vice President, Customer Fulfilment Operations (Asia Pacific, Middle East and North Africa, and Latin America), atsaid that the COVID-19 pandemic has underlined the important role thatand ecommerce can play for customers as much as for small businesses and the economy."We take this responsibility seriously, and we're proud of the work our teams are doing to help small and other businesses deliver to our customers through this difficult time."We want to continue helping customers all over India get everything they need so they can continue to practice social distancing. To enable this, we are creating work opportunities for close to 50,000 seasonal associates across our fulfilment and delivery network," he said.Saxena added that this will also keep as many people as possible working during this pandemic while providing a safe work environment for them."While creating these opportunities,remains committed to the health and safety of its associates, partners, employees, and customers, and has implemented a number of measures towards their well-being," the company statement said.The company has made almost 100 significant process changes in operations for the safety of workers which include mandatory face covering, daily temperature checks in buildings, increased frequency and intensity of cleaning at all sites including regular sanitization of frequently touched areas, and awareness-building among associates on safety requirements around hand-washing and hand sanitization.After nearly two months of stringent movement curbs to combat the spread of coronavirus pandemic, consumers have resumed online shopping and are placing orders for items like laptops, AC, and fridge in red zones that have now been allowed to ship orders of nonessential items under liberal set of rules for lockdown 4.0.E-commerce companies like Flipkart,and Snapdeal were earlier this week allowed to ship all items across the country (except containment zones).In the first two phases of the lockdown, which started from March 25, e-commerce companies were allowed to sell only essential items like grocery, healthcare and pharmaceutical products.In the third phase (May 4-17), these platforms were allowed to sell all items in orange and green zones, but only essential items were allowed to be shipped in red zones, which included top e-commerce hubs like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad.An industry watcher, however, noted that despite the pent up demand, sales continue to be a fraction of the volumes seen in the pre-COVID-19 timeframe. The industry hopes that the demand will pick up in the coming days as the situation around COVID-19 improves, and more sellers resume operation.E-commerce platform saw a significant impact on their business during the lockdown, given that grocery segment accounts for a small portion of online sales.While orders are scaling up now, the sector continues to face the challenge of availability of limited manpower for warehouses and delivery, prompting the likes ofto bring in seasonal workers.Grocery delivery platforms like BigBasket and Grofers have also scaled up hiring to meet the increased demand.Interestingly, food delivery platforms like Zomato and Swiggy have announced laying off over 1,600 employees amid the COVID-19 pandemic. | 50,000 seasonal roles will be across its warehousing and delivery network. move comes as country looks to a staggered exit from lockdown. tech-led companies like Zomato, Swiggy, ShareChat, Ola lay off workers. e-commerce giant says it is 'proud' of work opportunities for 50,000 seasonal associates. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/market/fpis-invest-1-2-billion-in-bond-market-after-lok-sabha-poll-result/1601258/ | Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have invested $1.2 billion into Indian bond markets in the past nine trading sessions since May 24, a day after the Narendra Modi-led BJP government won a majority in Parliament, signaling a global positive sentiment against the political stability of the country.
The benchmark government bond —7.26% yielding notes maturing in 2029 — rose by 4 basis points to close at 6.97% on Friday on account of an increase in Brent crude oil prices. However, benchmark yields since the past week have been at their lowest levels since November 2017. The Brent on Friday traded at $62.63 bbl (per barrel), a 1.56% increase over Thursday.
Dealers believe bond yields can drop further by nearly 10-15 bps as situations have turned favourable for bond markets to flourish. “Crude oil prices being at a comfortable level and with rate cuts being off the table in India and in the US, bond yields are expected to fall to levels of 6.8% in the short-term period of one to two months,” said Ajay Manglunia, MD and Head-institutional fixed income, JM Financial.
Global funds invested $140 million into Indian debt on Thursday, when the Reserve Bank of India announced a 25 basis point (bps) rate cut to 5.75% and shifted its stance to ‘accommodative’, signaling no more rate hikes further. In June so far, FPIs have bought nearly $500 million worth of debt on the back of an inflow of $537 million in May.
The quota for FPI investment in gilts is Rs 2.34 lakh crore as on June 7, according to CCIL data; the utilisation as was 69.46% for gilts. The NSDL data shows that as of June 6, the limit for FPI investments in corporate bonds is Rs 3.03 lakh crore. The utilised level is 68.61%. FPIs invest in various debt market instruments such as government bonds (G-secs), state development loans and corporate bonds, but with prescribed limits and restrictions by the central bank. | foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have invested $1.2 billion into india bond markets in the past nine trading sessions since may 24. the benchmark government bond rose by 4 basis points to close at 6.97% on friday on account of an increase in Brent crude oil prices. benchmark yields since the past week have been at their lowest levels since November 2017. dealers believe bond yields can drop further by nearly 10-15 bps as situations have turned favourable for bond markets to flourish. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/finance/tax-collection-trend-showing-signs-of-pick-up-economy-on-recovery-path-finance-secretary/articleshow/78981319.cms | NEW DELHI: In signs of the economy continuing to reflate, the government's tax collections have picked up and high-frequency activity indicators continue to improve on the back of the government's targeted COVID-19 stimulus, Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said.In an interview with PTI, Pandey said the generation of e-way bills, needed for transportation of goods, is back to pre-Covid levels and online payments have risen exponentially.Collection of Goods and Services Tax ( GST ), levied when a product is consumed or a service is rendered, has risen for the second month in a row."The ( tax collection ) trend shows that it did decline for the past few months, but it is not only on the path of recovery but is also picking up. In the month of September, GST collection was 4 per cent higher than what was there in the corresponding period last year," Pandey said."In the month of October, it has risen by 10 per cent year-on-year with a collection of above Rs 1.05 lakh crore," he added.Pandey said the generation of e-way bills, which is mandatory for transporting goods worth over Rs 50,000, has gone up 21 per cent in October, while the number of e-invoice generation has touched 29 lakh IRNs (Invoice Reference Numbers) a day."E-way bill and e-invoice coupled with better GST collections show that the economy was not only on path of recovery but also returning to the growth path and picking up steadily," Pandey, who is also the Revenue Secretary, said.The gross direct tax collection in April-October period of the current fiscal stood at Rs 4.95 lakh crore, down 22 per cent over the same period last fiscal.While corporate tax collection fell 26 per cent to Rs 2.65 lakh crore, personal income tax collection was 16 per cent lower at Rs 2.34 lakh crore.GST collection in April-October period of the current fiscal stood at Rs 5.59 lakh crore, 20 per cent lower than the collection in the same period last fiscal.Notwithstanding the dip in revenues, the government has issued Rs 1.27 lakh crore worth of income tax refunds and Rs 70,000 crore GST refunds so far this fiscal."In last 7 months, a total Rs 2 lakh crore refund was issued. This was during the time when our collection was less," Pandey said.He said the focus on faceless assessment, third-party information gathering and sharing of data between various agencies has helped improve tax collection by making it difficult for people to evade taxes."So the tendency to take advantage of the information asymmetry and take risk of tax evasion would be much much lower," he said.Pandey said the department is collecting third-party information like taxpayer's consumption pattern, bank statement, mutual fund and share transaction, property transaction, import, export and foreign remittances."The economic impact of pandemic would have been much more if our tax collection system had not improved. During the last year, we have taken measures like faceless assessment, faceless appeal, SFT (statement of financial transactions), restriction on cash withdrawal by imposing TDS (tax deducted at source)."So the unscrupulous people who were evading taxes, now it has become harder for them. These would incentivise people to furnish correct tax information," he said.The system analyzes the information asymmetry and issues red flags. So the risk premium is very high on tax evasion. We are sure that now the tendency to take risk of under-disclosure or non-disclosure of income would be much lower, Pandey added.On economic stimulus package, he said the government's intervention in the form of stimulus has addressed the need of most deserving section of economy and society."We are continuously monitoring the ground situation and the government will come out with whatever measures needed. We have come out with assistance relating to cash, food, and have provided liquidity to MSMEs and issued tax refunds, deferred tax payments, etc," he said.To promote domestic manufacturing in electronics, mobile, pharma and medical devices, the government is giving production linked incentives, Pandey said."Stimulus is not a one-time affair; it's not that one size fits all. It's time-to-time interventions with apt measures," he added.The government had in May announced a Rs 20 lakh crore 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' stimulus package to boost the economy.Last month, a Rs 73,000 crore package, including advance payment of a part of wages to central government employees and cash in lieu of leave travel concession (LTC), was announced to stimulate consumer demand and investment in the economy damaged by the coronavirus pandemic. | e-way bills generation is back to pre-Covid levels, pandey says. e-invoice generation has touched 29 lakh IRNs a day, he says. government has issued Rs 1.27 lakh crore worth of refunds and Rs 70,000 crore GST refunds. a total of Rs 70,000 crore refund was issued in last 7 months. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/us-economy-records-fastest-growth-since-2014/articleshow/65172989.cms | The US economy accelerated to a 4.1 percent pace of growth in the second quarter, the fastest since 2014, letting President Donald Trump claim a win for his policies even though expansion is projected to cool.The annualized rate of gains in gross domestic product was just shy of the 4.2 percent median forecast in a Bloomberg survey. It followed first-quarter growth of 2.2 percent that was revised from 2 percent, the Commerce Department reported Friday. Consumer spending grew 4 percent, more than estimated, while nonresidential business investment climbed at a 7.3 percent clip.Trump seized the chance to declare his policies, including the biggest tax overhaul since the Reagan era, a success, calling the data “amazing” and “very sustainable.” The likelihood is nevertheless that the pace of expansion will slow as the effects of tax cuts fades, companies pull back in the face of foreign tariffs or strong dollar and the Federal Reserve raises interest rates further.“The economy is doing quite well,” said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. “It’ll be hard to repeat this performance on a sustained basis.”Illustrating the volatility of some elements of GDP , net exports contributed 1.06 percentage point to the pace of growth, the most since 2013, partly on a surge in soybean shipments ahead of retaliatory tariffs. Inventories subtracted 1 point, the most since 2014, Commerce said, citing soybean stocks as well as those of drugs and sundries and petroleum and related products.Fed policy makers are expected to continue their gradual pace of interest-rate hikes aimed at keeping the economy from overheating, without moving so fast that they could choke off growth. The dollar and yields on 10-year Treasuries declined after the report, which also showed inflation excluding food and energy was lower than estimated.Trump, speaking Friday at the White House, celebrated the report and said the economy is on track to reach an annual growth rate of more than 3 percent. “As the trade deals come in one by one, we’re going to go a lot higher than these numbers, and these are great numbers,” the president said.Economists’ forecasts for second-quarter GDP, the value of all goods and services produced in the nation, ranged from 3 percent to 5 percent. The GDP estimate is the first of three for the quarter, with the other releases scheduled for August and September when more information becomes available.With the Friday data, the Commerce Department also released comprehensive GDP revisions going back decades. They showed a higher household-saving rate than previously reported, as well as faster growth in the first quarter of recent years, though the overall narrative of the economy’s performance over the last decade wasn’t much different.The revisions also showed the economy surpassed $20 trillion in nominal dollars in the first quarter.Even with the relatively strong pace of growth last quarter, most economists expect expansion to settle back to near its long-run rate, and some have flagged the risk of a recession in two years. While polls and historical trends suggest Democrats are primed for significant gains in November’s midterm elections, voters give Trump high marks for the economy.Compared with a year earlier, second-quarter GDP rose 2.8 percent, just shy of the 3 percent mark, which was last reached in 2015. The Trump administration’s official goal is for sustained GDP growth of 3 percent, which would well exceed the average 2.2 percent pace during this expansion and the Fed’s longer-run expectation of 1.8 percent.One measure that economists look at for a better sense of underlying demand showed strength. Final sales to private domestic purchasers -- which exclude trade, inventories and government outlays -- grew at a 4.3 percent pace, the second- fastest since 2014.The pace of expansion in consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of the economy, exceeded projections for 3 percent and contributed 2.69 percentage points to growth. Purchases of new autos were a major factor, along with spending on health care, housing and utilities and food services and accommodations. That followed a downwardly revised 0.5 percent pace of consumption growth in the prior three months.In addition to lower taxes, consumers’ purchasing power is benefiting from steady hiring, an unemployment rate that’s near the lowest since 1969, improving finances, relatively low borrowing costs and contained inflation.The growth in nonresidential business investment contributed almost 1 percentage point to growth though the 7.3 percent pace was slower than the first quarter’s 11.5 percent. Spending on structures advanced 13.3 percent following a 13.9 percent gain in the prior period, while equipment investment cooled to 3.9 percent and intellectual property spending slowed to 8.2 percent.Housing remained a weak spot in the economy amid signs that the sector is poised for its broadest slowdown in years. Residential investment contracted at a 1.1 percent rate, the fourth decline in five quarters. The drag on overall growth, though, was negligible.The contribution from net exports reflected a 9.3 percent gain in shipments abroad and a 0.5 percent increase in imports. In addition to soybeans, exports were boosted by petroleum and related products. “Producers may have front-loaded some goods for exports ahead of the tariffs,” JPMorgan’s Feroli said.Government spending increased at a 2.1 percent rate, adding 0.37 percentage point to growth. Federal outlays rose 3.5 percent, the second-fastest rate since 2014, boosted by defense spending. State and local outlays advanced 1.4 percentThe data showed consumers’ wallets grew at a slower pace. After- tax incomes adjusted for inflation increased at a 2.6 percent annual pace, after 4.4 percent in the prior quarter. The saving rate fell to 6.8 percent from 7.2 percent, which was revised from 3.3 percent as part of the comprehensive update.First-quarter gross domestic income, adjusted for inflation, was revised to a 3.9 percent gain from a previously reported 3.6 percent.Price data in the report indicated that inflation was in line with the Fed’s goal. Excluding food and energy, the central bank’s preferred price index rose at a 2 percent annualized rate last quarter, following 2.2 percent in the first three months of the year. | the economy grew at 4.1 percent in the second quarter, the fastest since 2014. the annualized rate of gains in gross domestic product was just shy of the 4.2 percent median forecast. consumer spending grew 4 percent, more than estimated, while nonresidential business investment climbed 7.3 percent. president seized the chance to declare his policies a success, calling the data "amazing" | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/policy/launch-of-social-stock-exchange-may-mark-a-new-chapter-in-impact-financing-in-india-5554221.html | India's social sector is set for a period of growth. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's 2019 Budget declaration was a timely intervention in this regard when she announced the setting up of a Social Stock Exchange (SSE) under the ambit of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).
The SSE, a first of its kind for the country, would allow for listing social enterprises and voluntary organisations working for the realisation of social welfare objective so they can raise capital as equity, debt, grants, or performance-linked payments.
According to a Brookings India report — The Promise of Impact Investing in India (July 2019) — India faces an annual financing gap of $565 billion in meeting its Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.
Also Read | Sebi extends deadline for public comments on social stock exchange report until August 15
The introduction of the SSE and the consequent appointment of a Working Group that has come up with a set of recommendations will give an impetus to addressing part of this gap. This is especially significant now, as the COVID-19 outbreak and its aftermath have sent shockwaves across the world, adding to the burden of livelihood and lives affected. Innovative means of channelling funds towards development is a key priority, and I applaud the Ford Foundation's recent announcement selling social bonds worth $1 billion by borrowing from its future as a strong example of this much-needed impetus towards development financing.
A bridge for funders and social enterprises
The Working Group’s recommendations for setting up the SSE include the principle of creating a platform that will match funders looking to support development objectives with organizations delivering impact.
Philanthropies, retail donors, CSRs, impact investors and mainstream equity investors can come together on the SSE and social enterprises — both not-for-profit organisations (NPOs) and for-profit enterprises (FPEs) — would have access to a wider pool of funds.
Also Read | Explained: What are Social Stock Exchanges?
By recognising the diversity of NPOs in terms of size and the reporting burden they can take on, the Working Group has made it simpler for smaller organizations to list on the exchange by enabling aggregator mechanisms, such as Social Venture Funds.
Adopting similar reporting standards for NPOs and FPEs is another positive step, as it will break the silo of legal structures allowing funders the option of selecting projects based on impact rather than legal status.
Validation of impact and pay-for-success
The one area that could benefit from a clear set of guidelines is the validation of impact measures. The Working Group has set out a comprehensive reporting framework on social impact, in terms of reach, depth, and inclusion. However, in the initial years, it is proposed that the data is self-reported. To build trust on the SSE platform and to enable faster transactions that don’t rely on heavy, independent diligence, it would be a strong value-add for the SSE to require some simple, low-cost audits to validate the social impact data. The costs of these audits could be absorbed by the capacity-building fund proposed by the working group to ensure that smaller organisations do not have high costs associated with listing on the SSE.
For instance, the Social Stock Exchange in the UK only lists companies that have passed the 'social impact test'.
Data validation and its benefits in unlocking funds for the development sector may be analogous to what the credit-rating instruments did for debt and bond markets, in India and globally. Such impact data not only improves transparency and enables stronger matching of funds but also forms the basis for more innovative finance instruments. The Working Group has supported instruments such as pay-for-success and impact bonds for nonprofits.
Our own experience at the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has shown the effectiveness of these instruments when it comes to responsible impact development. In fact, with the Quality Education India Development India Bond (DIB), we are seeing impressive impact results, and much higher than targeted outcomes.
The structure of transparency and incentives has allowed for a much stronger focus on impact. As India looks at setting up the Social Stock Exchange, we should also find a way to include and encourage the participation of FPEs in such DIBs, possibly through social venture funds (SVFs).
Another area where the Social Stock Exchange can extend beyond the current funding instruments is to enable debt funding. Similar to the Working Group’s suggestion on listing smaller entities through the Social Venture Fund route, we may evaluate how the SSE can enable debt listing through pooled structures for NPOs and FPEs.
There are global precedents of this. The Impact Investment Exchange of Singapore, which is run in partnership with the Stock Exchange of Mauritius and is open to limited accredited investors who want to invest in social enterprises, supports debt and equity models.
Enabling Liquidity
Liquidity is a key element of a stock exchange and, while it is simpler to create liquidity for equity and debt instruments, the Working Group has also suggested liquidity mechanisms for grant structures as well. The concept of listing a 'zero-coupon zero-principal' bond can allow for the exit of early-stage donors of a project when the project shows proof of concept and impact, and other donors are willing to support it. Similarly, the SVF can allow for the tradability of its units. Global tailwinds of the COVID-19 pandemic have triggered a new wave of investor interest in social impact development. Organizations, funding agencies, and philanthropy funds are looking for ways to invest in impactful programmes that create livelihoods and opportunities.
By allowing for a platform that caters to the needs of funders and beneficiaries, the SSE is a positive step in that direction. A set of rules that defines impact validation and promotes incentive-led instruments will nudge the SSE on the path to becoming a vehicle for positive growth.
(The author is Country Director, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, India)
Follow our coverage of the coronavirus crisis here | the social stock exchange (SSE) would allow for listing social enterprises and voluntary organisations working for the realisation of social welfare objective. the first of its kind for the country would allow them to raise capital as equity, debt, grants, or performance-linked payments. india faces an annual financing gap of $565 billion in meeting its Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. the introduction of the SSE and the subsequent appointment of a Working Group will give an impetus to addressing part of this gap. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/money/icici-lombard-launches-complete-health-insurance-with-new-health-plans-benefits/2147423/ | ICICI Lombard, a private sector non-life insurance company, today launched its ICICI Lombard Complete Health Insurance offering with new health plans and benefits. The plans – Health Shield, Health Shield Plus, Health Elite, and Health Elite Plus, will include the latest features and comprehensive coverage to provide enhanced protection to customers.
Some of the newly introduced coverage benefits include donor expenses, domiciliary hospitalization, emergency assistance, worldwide cover, unlimited reset, air ambulance, super NCB (no claim bonus), sum insured protector and claim protector, cashless OPD services, among others. The company claims to introduce benefits that are aligned to the new normal and, hence, contextual to today’s needs of customers.
With Covid-19, experts say that there is a heightened awareness among consumers to avail the security of health insurance, and customer mindset is shifting from perceiving health insurance as an expense to considering it as an important investment. Also, people are now focusing on contactless servicing, social distancing, and digital solutions. Recognizing these trends, ICICI Lombard has included contemporary benefits in its comprehensive health insurance offering to help its customers restart right in the new normal.
The new ICICI’s plans come with various exclusive features, apart from addressing the daily health needs such as in-patient hospitalization, daycare procedures, and treatment. Some of these include claim protector, unlimited reset benefit, ASI protector, domiciliary hospitalization, and worldwide coverage, among others. For instance, the claim protector benefit will pay for the list of non-payable items, while with the unlimited reset benefit, policyholders can reset up to 100 per cent of the base sum insured unlimited times in a policy year for an unrelated ailment. The Sum Insured Protector feature, on the other hand, increases the sum insured every year as per the prevailing inflation rates thereby ensuring that customers are adequately covered due to rising prices.
Sanjeev Mantri, Executive Director, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, says “The new plans introduced in our ICICI Lombard Complete Health Insurance solutions are designed to cover customer needs across prevention, consultation, hospitalization thereby providing holistic cover. The policy offers this cover for the individual and family members.”
The new plans will also enable customers to avail of value-added services such as free annual health check-ups, online chat with doctors, e-opinion, dietician, and nutrition e-consultation, among others. One can even connect with a qualified doctor 24×7 from anywhere and get their medical needs addressed immediately. The prescription provided by the doctor can be used to order medicines online. To provide increased convenience to its customers, ICICI Lombard has made these products available on its IL Take Care app. | ICICI Lombard has launched its ICICI Lombard Complete Health Insurance offering with new plans and benefits. the plans include health shield, health shield plus, health elite, and health elite plus. some of the newly introduced coverage benefits include donor expenses, domiciliary hospitalization, emergency assistance, worldwide cover, unlimited reset, air ambulance, super NCB (no claim bonus), sum insured protector and claim protector. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/energy/power/india-saves-rs-89122-crore-in-2018-19-by-energy-efficiency/articleshow/75581732.cms | NEW DELHI: India saved Rs 89,122 crore through energy efficiency in 2018-19 and reduced energy intensity by 20 per cent in the fiscal compared to 2005 level, according to a report. India has set a target to reduce the energy intensity by 33-35 per cent by 2030 compared to 2005 level."The energy efficiency initiatives by BEE ( Bureau of Energy Efficiency ) led to savings worth Rs 89,122 crore in 2018-19," a report released by Power Minister R K Singh on Wednesday.While unveiling the e-book, Singh said, "We have pledged in COP-21 that we will bring down energy intensity of economy by 33-35 per cent compared to 2005 levels by 2030. Now, with our energy efficiency initiatives we have already reduced the energy intensity of our economy by 20 per cent compared to 2005 levels which is a very good performance indeed."The report was prepared by an expert agency PWC Ltd , which was engaged by Bureau of Energy efficiency (BEE) for an independent verification to assess the resultant annual savings in energy as well as CO2 emissions through various initiatives in India.The findings of the report reflect that implementation of various energy efficiency schemes have led to total electricity savings to the tune of 113.16 Billion Units in 2018-19, which is 9.39 per cent of the net electricity consumption.Energy savings (electrical + thermal), achieved in the energy consuming sectors are to the tune of 16.54 Mtoe, which is 2.84 per cent of the net total energy consumption (approx..581.60 Mtoe) in 2018-19.The total energy savings achieved in 2018-19 is 23.73 Mtoe (million Tonne of Oil Equivalent), which is 2.69 per cent of the total primary energy supply (estimated to be 879.23 Mtoe in India) during 2018-19.This includes both Supply Side and Demand Side sectors of the economy.Overall, this study has estimated that various energy efficiency measures have translated into savings worth Rs 89,122 crore (approximately) against last year's (2017-18) savings of Rs 53,627 crore.These efforts have also contributed in reducing 151.74 Million Tonnes of CO2 (MTCO2) emissions ( in 2018-19) , whereas last year (2017-18) this number was 108 MTCO2 Since 2017-18, every year Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) appoints a third party expert agency to conduct study for comparing the actual energy consumption due to different energy efficiency schemes, with the estimated energy consumption, had the current energy efficiency measures were not undertaken i.e. counterfactual.The objective of this study is to evaluate the performance and impact of all the key energy efficiency programmes in India, in terms of total energy saved and the related reduction in the CO2 emissions. | India has set a target to reduce the energy intensity by 33-35 per cent by 2030. the report was released by power minister R K Singh on Wednesday. it reflects the implementation of various energy efficiency schemes. the total electricity savings in 2018-19 is 9.39 per cent of the net electricity consumption. the total energy savings achieved in 2018-19 is 23.73 Mtoe (million Tonne of oil equivalent) | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/hotels-/-restaurants/mcdonalds-india-subsidiary-posts-net-profit-finally/articleshow/67250494.cms | Mumbai | New Delhi: After entering India more than two decades ago, burger and fries chain McDonald’s posted its first profit during year-to-March 2018 amid a long-drawn legal dispute with one of its key licensee partners.The local unit of Chicago-headquartered fast food giant posted a net profit of Rs 65.2 lakh during FY17-18, compared with a net loss of Rs 305 crore a year ago, according to its latest filings with the Registrar of Companies.The company has two partners in the country — North & East Business is operated by Connaught Plaza Restaurants (CPRL) while Westlife Development is the master franchisee in the western and southern markets. It entered India in 1996, and over the years, accumulated net loss of Rs 421 crore.“The company has not only been able to stem any further erosion of its net worth, but has also been able to successfully reverse the trend of erosion through the infusion of fresh capital,” McDonald’s India said in its latest regulatory filing. Total income which it earned mostly through royalty, grew 8% to Rs 119.6 crore.There was a strong revival last fiscal when most quick-service restaurants posted high samestore sales growth, helped by a surge in discount-driven footfalls at malls and greater presence in new markets.During the year, the company allotted shares worth Rs 71 crore to the parent company and also increased authorised capital by Rs 50 crore to Rs 458 crore.Last August, the company terminated all its franchise arrangements in favour of CPRL. McDonald’s had terminated its joint venture, directing CPRL to stop using its brand system, trademark, designs and associated intellectual property. The latest filings said its investments in the licensee partner were impaired and accordingly a provision of Rs 198.2 crore has been considered in the financial statements for diminution in value of investments in CPRL.The Bakshi versus McDonald’s legal battle dates back to August 2013 when the latter was fired as the managing director of the joint venture. Trouble between Bakshi-led CPRL and the 50:50 JV between him and McDonald’s India escalated when Bakshi challenged his removal at the Company Law Board (now National Company Law Tribunal or NCLT), accusing McDonald’s India of mismanagement and oppression.NCLT had reinstated Bakshi as managing director in July 2017. Bakshi’s allegation was that the termination of the JV by McDonald’s violated an earlier NCLT order which asked McDonald’s Corp to refrain from interfering in the smooth functioning of CPRL. This resulted in NCLT issuing a show cause notice to McDonald’s Corp, which the US chain challenged in the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).The eating-out market in India, which is dominated by unorganised players, is expected to reach $131 billion by 2022. The total sales of quick-service restaurants are estimated to grow by 9.2% to reach $21.6 billion by then, according to Euromonitor data.Further, the western fast food market that is just 1.3% of the overall eating-out market, is expected to grow the fastest by 13.4% to reach $1.8 billion in 2022. | the local unit of fast food giant posted a net profit of Rs 65.2 lakh during FY17-18. it compared with a net loss of Rs 305 crore a year ago. the company entered india in 1996, and accumulated net loss of Rs 421 crore. it has two partners in the country — north & east business is operated by CPRL. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/money/home-loan-car-loan-borrower-heres-how-you-will-get-impacted-by-40-bps-repo-rate-cut/1967217/ | Good news for the home loan and car loan borrowers. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced reduction in the repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 40 bps to 4.0 per cent from 4.40 per cent earlier, with immediate effect. Accordingly, the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the Bank Rate stand reduced to 4.25 per cent from 4.65 per cent; and the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands reduced to 3.35 per cent from 3.75 per cent.
The MPC on Friday also decided to continue with the accommodative stance as long as it is necessary to revive growth and mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the economy, while ensuring that inflation remains within the target.
With this announcement, borrowers of all types of loans — including home loans and car loans — stand to gain as they will now have to pay lower EMIs, which will put more money in their hands.
Commenting on the same, Naveen Kukreja – CEO & Co-founder, Paisabazaar.com, said, “The policy rates set by the MPC is not the sole factor determining the banks’ MCLR. Banks also factor in their cost of deposits while determining their MCLR. Hence, the full transmission of the rate cut in the MCLR-linked loans will take some time. Existing borrowers with MCLR-linked loans will continue to repay their loans according to the existing rates till the next interest rate reset date of their loans.”
The transmission of the latest rate cut will be faster in case of loans linked to repo rate. New applicants and existing borrowers of loans linked to repo rates will benefit from the policy rate reduction as and when banks reset the interest rates of their repo-rate linked loans. However, “the transmission of rate reduction will be incomplete for the fresh borrowers if the banks simultaneously increase their spread or credit risk premium during their interest rate reset,” added Kukreja.
Here is a look at how home loan and car loan borrowers will get impacted by the repo rate cut: | the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced reduction in the repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 40 bps to 4.0 per cent from 4.40 per cent earlier, with immediate effect. the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the bank rate stand reduced to 4.25 per cent from 4.65 per cent. the reverse repo rate under the LAF stands reduced to 3.35 per cent from 3.75 per cent. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/brand-aspirations-drive-nagaland-youth-to-walk-an-extra-mile-e-tailers-could-make-it-easier-3411031.html | On the 15th of every alternate month, Veronica Waghim and a few of her friends drive down almost 50 kilometers away from her village to the state capital of Kohima (to friends/relatives' homes) to collect a few products that people in their neighbourhood have ordered from e-commerce portals. It may not be a smooth drive but she says that it is worth the effort when they get hold of the products, which are otherwise not available in the local market.
Shoes, clothes and other accessories are the most common ones on the list of items ordered. Mostly branded merchandise that will not get delivered to the interiors of her home state Nagaland, get delivered to the larger cities. And people don't mind driving down for that.
Most of us imagine people from villages to wear plain unbranded clothes and footwear. States like Nagaland could well be an exception because they are not only willing to drive extra miles for the right attire, there is a well-defined brand consciousness among the youth as well.
She says that exposure to the internet and international lifestyles have increased the aspirations of those in her village. So, whenever there are new product launches by a Nike, Adidas or even Prada, they are the first to know. And it is a matter of pride when someone of a particular age group gets is before the others. Further, she also knows of people who drive from as far as 200 kilometres away to get goods ordered online.
"Most of us work part-time as guides for tourists during busy seasons like the Hornbill festival (December 1-10 every year). Whatever money we make out of them is mostly spent on buying new apparel and shoes. The idea is to earn yourself and spend as you please," she says.
Considered as the fashion capital of the country, the North East is estimated to contribute a majority chunk of branded apparel sale of online retailers. But last mile connectivity has been a consistent problem.
A Bain and Company report had said that China, South Korea, and increasingly India, are at the forefront of digitalisation in retail. In fact, India saw a compounded annual growth rate of 53 percent in e-retail penetration from 2013 to 2017 beating its Asian peers. E-commerce players are also taking note. Amazon, for instance, expanded its delivery network to the North East in early 2018. But there are several states, especially Nagaland, that only have a handful of delivery points.
As e-commerce players drive business deeper into the Indian hinterland, youngsters like Waghim may no longer have to travel to bigger cities to get their aspirational goods. And the misconceptions about the spending abilities of Indians in rural markets may also get busted with a significantly larger sales reported from smaller towns.
While road infrastructure is shoddy in several parts of India, especially the North-East, there is a rising opportunity for the global players to cater to the newer markets that are opening up. Setting up a physical store may not be feasible, but local grocery stores could be used as a delivery point. Similarly, post offices and bank branches could also facilitate product delivery.
The market for branded products has fast moved into areas which were once viewed as 'no-go' areas. The buyers are willing to walk a few miles to get their products. It is time the retailers also get ready to make their move. | e-commerce is booming in the north east, with many retailers offering branded goods. the region is considered the fashion capital of the country. but connectivity is a problem. e-commerce is booming in the region, with many retailers offering branded goods. a new report says the north east is the fastest growing market for e-commerce. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/an-evening-walk-down-d-st-market-posts-biggest-single-day-gain-in-10-years-investors-richer-by-7-lakh-crore4459021-4459021.html | live bse live
nse live Volume Todays L/H More ×
Market benchmarks Sensex and Nifty posted their biggest single-day gains in 10 years on September 20 after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a cut in corporate tax rates.
After starting the session on a flat note, Sensex surged 2,285 points while Nifty soared 677 points. Nifty Bank jumped over 2,661 points intraday as market experts and brokerages hailed the government's move.
The sharp rally in equities made investors richer by Rs 6.83 lakh crore in a single day as the cumulative market capitalisation of BSE listed firms jumped to Rs 1,45,37,378.01 crore from Rs 1,38,54,439.41 crore on the previous session.
The government's move of slashing corporate tax rate will have a chain effect and bodes well for the market in the long term, Rajat Rajgarhia, Managing Director & CEO of Motilal Oswal Financial Services, told CNBC-TV18.
"This is huge for the market. There were few announcements that were keeping sentiments in check as FM was trying to boost market sentiments and improve the state of the economy by boosting exports, banks consolidation, recapitalization and so on but reducing the corporate tax rate to 22 percent or domestic players and 15 percent for new entrants setting up
manufacturing units is a big boost," said Mustafa Nadeem, CEO, Epic Research.
Sensex closed with a massive gain of 1,921 points, or 5.32 percent, at 38,014.62, with 25 stocks ending in green and 5 in the red.
Hero MotoCorp, Maruti Suzuki, IndusInd Bank, Bajaj Finance and State Bank of India emerged as the top gainers in the Sensex index.
On the other hand, Power Grid, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, NTPC and Tech Mahindra closed in the red in the Sensex index.
Nifty closed at 11,274.20, up 569 points or 5.32 percent. Among the 50 stocks in the index, 44 logged gains and only six closed with losses.
BSE Midcap index outperformed Sensex, ending with a gain of 6.28 percent. However, the Smallcap index underperformed the benchmark as the index closed 3.94 percent up.
Barring BSE IT and Teck, all sectoral indices closed with gains. BSE Auto jumped 9.85 percent, ending the day as the top gainer among sectoral indices, followed by BSE Bankex (up 8.21 percent) and Capital Goods (up 7.93 percent).
IT stocks came under pressure after rupee grew stronger against the US dollar. The Indian currency settled 38 paise higher at 70.94 per dollar.
For the week, Sensex climbed 1.68 percent while Nifty advanced 1.80 percent.
Top news of the day:
In order to promote growth and investment, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on September 20 slashed the effective corporate tax from 30 percent to 25.17 percent, inclusive of all cess and surcharges for domestic companies.
The meeting of the Northern Zonal Council chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah began on September 20 morning. The grouping comprises Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar made it clear that his party will contest the 2020 state assembly polls together with the BJP as an ally of the NDA, reported IANS.
Senior BJP leader Chinmayanand was arrested by the Special Investigating team (SIT) probing the rape charges against him.
Stocks in news:
Shares of HDFC Bank surged 9.06 percent to Rs 1,200.10 on BSE on September 20 after the government announced corporate tax rate cut. Rajat Rajgarhia, Managing Director & CEO at Motilal Oswal Financial Services told CNBC-TV18 that most private banks would be immediate beneficiaries of the tax cuts announced today.
Shares of HDFC climbed 3.92 percent to Rs 2,052.10 after it said it will raise up to Rs 3,000 crore by issuing bonds to augment its long-term resources.
Shares of Yes Bank rose 2.40 percent to Rs 55.45, a day after Morgan Credits (MCPL), part of the promoter group of the company, sold 2.3 percent shareholding in the bank.
Extending their losing spree into the fifth consecutive session, shares of Zee Entertainment Enterprises closed 2.49 percent lower at Rs 301.10, following reports that the promoter has been restricted from selling stake in the media company.
Shares of Dewan Housing Finance Corporation (DHFL) remained on the downward trajectory for the fourth consecutive day. The stock closed 8.63 percent down at Rs 43.40 even as it received proposals to act as development managers in certain large projects.
Global Updates:
World shares rose on Friday as stimulus measures by major central banks eased worries about growth, especially in Asian markets, while oil headed for its best week since January, reported Reuters.
Asian market ended slightly higher. Shanghai Composite Index closed 0.24 percent up at 3,006.45, while Kospi closed at 2,091.52, up 0.54 percent. Nikkei settled 0.16 percent higher at 22,079.09.
Technical view on the market:
Nifty formed a long bull candle today, that has engulfed up the range of the last 4 weeks in a single day. The key overhead resistance of 11,150-180 has been broken on the upside and the Nifty closed above it.
"We observe an upside breakout as per weekly timeframe chart, after the consolidation movement of the last one month. The near term trend of the Nifty seems to have reversed up sharply and more upside could be in store in the coming weeks. Having reached the swing high of 11,381 in today's session, one may expect next upside targets of 11,600 for the next 1-2 weeks," said Nagaraj Shetti – Technical & Derivative Analyst, HDFC securities. | Sensex and Nifty post biggest single-day gains in 10 years. Sensex surges 2,285 points while Nifty soares 677 points. Sensex closed with massive gain of 1,921 points, or 5.32 percent, at 38,014.62. Sensex closed with massive gain of 1,921 points, or 5.32 percent. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/wall-street-closes-up-on-signs-of-economic-rebound-5351471.html | A late-session rally pushed Wall Street to solid gains on Tuesday as market participants looked past widespread social unrest and pandemic worries to focus instead on easing lockdown restrictions and signs of economic recovery.
Tech shares, along with cyclical stocks like industrials and financials, gave the biggest lift to all three major stock indexes.
The Nasdaq, the S&P 500 and the Dow have been approaching their all-time closing highs in recent weeks and are now about 2%, 9% and 13%, respectively, below record closing levels.
The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq have closed in positive territory in six of the last seven sessions.
"Technicals are pushing the market higher and the market's not paying attention to the potential problems that the protests could have on local economies," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York.
Nationwide, violent protests over the death of a black man at the hands of law enforcement officers continued unabated, even as President Donald Trump vowed to unleash the military on the demonstrators.
"If the violence continues it might worsen the coronavirus' impact on businesses," Cardillo added. "A lot of stores would close; there'd be curfews; people wouldn't be able to shop and that would further hurt the economy."
But the green shoots of economic rebound driven in no small part by massive stimulus packages from Capitol Hill and the U.S. Federal Reserve has helped fuel investor optimism.
Market participants now await Friday's crucial jobs report from the Labor Department for a clearer picture of the extent of economic damage wrought by mandated lockdowns. The report is expected to show the unemployment rate surging to a historic 19.7%.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 267.63 points, or 1.05%, to 25,742.65, the S&P 500 gained 25.09 points, or 0.82%, to 3,080.82 and the Nasdaq Composite added 56.33 points, or 0.59%, to 9,608.38.
All 11 major sectors in the S&P 500 ended the session in the black, with energy and materials enjoying the largest percentage gains.
The ARCA Airline index , whose constituents have been hit particularly hard by COVID-19-related restrictions, was up 3.8% boosted by a slow but steady increase in commercial air traffic.
Southwest Airlines Co rose 2.6% after extending buyout and paid leaves to employees in what its chief executive called an effort to "ensure survival."
Shares of Slack Technologies Inc advanced 3.2% after Cowen initiated coverage of the workspace communication platform with an "outperform" rating.
A report that Western Union has made an offer to buy smaller rival MoneyGram International Inc sent the money transfer companies shares up by 11.3% and 29.7%, respectively.
Shares of luxury retailer Tiffany & Co dropped 8.9% following a report from WWD that its deal with LVMH is seen as uncertain amid the deteriorating U.S. market.
Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 2.89-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.69-to-1 ratio favored advancers.
The S&P 500 posted 17 new 52-week highs and no new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 77 new highs and five new lows.
Volume on U.S. exchanges was 10.72 billion shares, compared with the 11.35 billion average over the last 20 trading days. | tech shares, along with cyclical stocks like industrials and financials, give biggest lift to all three major stock indexes. the u.s. economy is recovering after a week of widespread social unrest and pandemic worries. the u.s. economy is recovering from a tumultuous week of economic growth. the u.s. economy is recovering from a tumultuous week of economic uncertainty. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world/pick-good-people-and-set-the-right-priorities-the-management-wisdom-of-lee-iacocca-4166741.html | Lee Iacocca is a name that frequently comes up whenever there is a discussion around leadership and management. The towering figure of corporate America, who turned around the fortunes of two automobile giants, died on July 3 at his home in Bel Air, California. He was 94.
At the beginning of his career, he impressed a Ford recruiter and was hired for an executive training program meant for future managers despite having a degree in mechanical engineering. Here he believed and applied his "thinking outside the box" strategy.
Iacocca presented a sales pitch of "56 for 56" that offered car models from 1956 with 20 percent discount and $56 a month for three years. The pitch was a success and he was noticed by founder’s grandson, Henry Ford II, who took him on board.
Iacocca believed, "If a leader never steps outside his comfort zone to hear different ideas, he grows stale” and therefore, a leader has to be creative to try something different.
Known as the father of the Ford Mustang, he sold ‘himself’ in the stylish sports four wheeler. His effortless, candid and direct sales pitch in automobile advertisements were aired for years proving that a good salesman is not born but made just like a good manager.
He was both brutal at wrecking rivals and subtle at gaining allies while moving up the corporate ladder. After a dramatic exit from Ford in 1978, Lacocca joined the distressed Chrysler.
After reducing the workforce, selling assets and winning union concessions, his gift of gab and other attributes gained him a controversial $1.5 billion federal loan guarantee to revive the debt-ridden company. He started a national debate over company’s importance to the national economy and a required “bailout”. He wasn’t afraid of taking calculative risks like the one he took when he offered thirty- day money back guarantee with the famous line, "Buy a car, get a check".
Iacocca also believed that every suggestion and idea needs appreciation. He nurtured an environment that could challenge existing conventions to solicit ideas from employees, dealers and unions. The key is to keep channels of communication open, failure of which will mean failure as a manager.
“If you can find a better car, buy it,” was the challenge Iacocca gave to the public in his blunt but confident manner. People tagged his identity to the product which could be seen in the rising sales figures month-on-month. After emerging as the most likeable face in the American automobile industry at the time, there were speculations of his running for the President of United States in 1988. The frank Lee became a favourite of the reporters.
“Here is what management is about: Pick good people and set the right priorities” writes Iacocca in Where have all the leaders gone?
“Best way to motivate employees was to give them a stake in success” is what he took from Henry Ford’s style in 1914. A shortened day’s shift from 9 hours to 8 hours and double minimum wages was what had helped Ford during industrialization.
A true leader always “strives to inspire”; “He motivates people with possibility, not with threats” is what Lee followed to make and sell cars faster even during recession. He was a patient listener and had the ability to inspire by building trust. He often said, "The inability to listen is a form of arrogance".
A talented debater, proactive and imaginative leader, and brilliant businessman injected competence in everything he took up.
But he also felt that no one could do it alone, and that talent does not trump the persistence of effort and the initial influence of a good mentor. ‘Nobody is born a leader, you need someone to teach you to walk and talk and be one. You need a mentor.’ | he was the father of the Ford Mustang and the father of the'silver bullet' he was brutal at wrecking rivals and subtle at gaining allies while moving up the corporate ladder. he was a 'great leader' who pushed the envelope of corporate management. he was a 'great leader' who 'got the job done' | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/auto/car-news/car-sales-september-2020-kia-sales-kia-sonet-kia-seltos-kia-carnival-kia-compact-suv/2095971/ | Car sales September 2020: Kia Sonet has become the highest-selling compact SUV within 12 days of its launch helping the company record a 147% Y-o-Y growth with 18,676 unit sales in September 2020.
Kia Motors India registered its highest-ever domestic sales since its entry into the Indian market, with 18,676 units in September 2020. The biggest contributor in the company’s sales, Kia Sonet which made its market debut on 18 September 2020, recorded 9,266 unit sales in just 12 days. Kia’s first product for India, the Seltos, continues its strong performance, with 9,079 unit sales.
The Indian auto market is recovering at a better-than-expected pace and we are progressing as per our defined plan. Kia’s third product and the first compact SUV in India, Kia Sonet has transformed its segment. The sales of Kia’s other industry-leading products like Kia Seltos and Carnival are also encouraging, Kookhyun Shim, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Kia Motors India said.
Kia Motors has been elevating its production capacity to meet the pre-COVID level of operations, and till now, has been successful in doing this. This not only allows the company to contribute to the revival of the Indian auto industry but also helps us bring notable growth to business and bring down the waiting period of vehicles, he added.
Bookings for the Sonet continue to rise and currently stand at over 35,000 units while a consistent demand for the Seltos continues as well. Kia Motors is also aggressive towards making India an export hub with over 70 identified export markets, aiming to trade 50,000 units overseas within the next 12 months.
Also read: Kia Sonet video review: Specs, features, expected price
Launched earlier this month at a starting price of Rs 6.71 lakh (ex-showroom), Kia Sonet comes in both petrol and diesel engine options – 1.2-litre petrol and a 1.5-litre diesel. The Sonet is the second car in India to offer optional clutchless transmission.
Available in six trims, Kia Sonet boasts features like ambient lighting along, front ventilated seats, sunroof, front parking sensors and cruise control. The sub-compact SUV comes with a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system that supports Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, along with UVO connected car functions. | Kia Sonet recorded 9,266 unit sales in just 12 days of its launch. the sub-compact SUV is the company's highest-ever domestic sales. the company is aggressive towards making India an export hub. the company is also aiming to trade 50,000 units overseas within the next 12 months. the company's first product for India, the Seltos, continues its strong performance. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/rights-issue-credit-positive-for-reliance-industries-to-result-in-debt-reduction-moodys-5220851.html | live bse live
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Moody's Investors Service on Monday said Reliance Industries' Rs 53,100 crore rights issue is credit positive as earnings will decline because of economic shutdowns. Last week, Reliance announced it will raise Rs 53,100 crore through a rights equity offering.
Also, the company announced an investment of Rs 5,656 crore by Silver Late in Jio Platforms, the digital services business of RIL.
"This is in line with the company's target to reduce its net debt to zero by March 31, 2021. The proceeds from the rights issue will reduce RIL's net debt by about $7.8 billion and is credit positive," Moody's said in a note.
Along with the previously announced asset sales to Facebook, Inc and BP Plc, RIL expects to generate net proceeds of Rs 1.1 lakh crore, which will reduce its net debt by the same amount.
"The total net debt reduction from completion of these transactions will lower RIL's reported net debt, which was Rs 1.6 lakh crore ($21.4 billion) as on March 31, 2020, by about 68 per cent and will be equivalent to 1.1x its reported EBITDA of Rs 1 lakh crore for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020," it said.
In addition, RIL also announced that it has started the process to carve out its oil-to-chemical (O2C) business as a separate subsidiary in order to facilitate the previously announced 20 per cent stake sale in that business to Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco).
Despite the coronavirus outbreak and lower oil prices, RIL confirmed that the due diligence process for the transaction is ongoing.
"This increases the likelihood of the transaction going ahead as announced in August 2019," the rating agency said, adding the transaction with Saudi Aramco values the O2C business at $75 billion and can potentially result in $12-15 billion of cash proceeds for RIL, depending on the amount of debt at the O2C business after the reorganization.
Reliance last week approved the biggest-ever rights issue of Rs 53,100 crore at Rs 1,257 per share.
The company had reported a 10.5 per cent increase in its reported EBITDA for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2020, as compared to a year ago.
While the economic shutdowns due to coronavirus outbreak resulted in a decline in earnings from RIL's O2C and retail businesses for the quarter ended March 2020, its earnings from its digital services continued to grow.
"We expect the earnings from its O2C and retail business to see a steeper decline in the quarter ending June 2020 as India's economy is scheduled to be under shutdown for at least 45 days in this quarter. An earnings recovery for these segments will depend on the timing of resumption of economic activity, which remains uncertain at this stage," it said.
Assuming the economic activity to resume by middle to end of May 2020, the rating agency expected RIL's consolidated EBITDA to decline 10-12 per cent in FY2021 as compared to FY2020. However, the EBITDA is expected to return to FY2020 levels in FY2022 as improved demand in combination with low oil prices will result in higher earnings for the O2C segment, while the earnings growth for retail will resume.
"RIL's recent foray into online retail through its partnership with Whatsapp and Facebook could result in a further boost in its retail earnings, which is currently not factored in our projections," Moody's said.
Disclaimer: “Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.” | moody's says the rights issue will reduce net debt by about $7.8 billion. the company also announced an investment of Rs 5,656 crore by silver late in jio platforms. the deal will also reduce its net debt by about 1.1 lakh crore. the company also announced it has started the process to carve out its oil-to-chemical (O2C) business. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/daily-voice-sun-pharma-blue-dart-and-relaxo-buy-ideas-for-coming-week-sacchitanand-uttekar-5771761.html | live bse live
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The upside looks limited, as of now, it is ideal for investors to ramp up their exposure to defensives. Meanwhile, post the sharp upward movement, traders should avoid leverage and focus on stock-specific longs due to the overbought state of the indices, Sacchitanand Uttekar – DVP – Technical (Equity), Tradebulls Securities, said in an interview with Moneycontrol’s Kshitij Anand.
Edited excerpts:
Q) A week powered by bulls which pushed Nifty beyond 11,600 levels. What led to the price action in the week gone by?
A) Sharp inflows and strong global sentiments have indeed helped our market to push beyond 11600 levels on the Nifty. The ongoing rally got further steam due to its short-covering based move ahead of its August F&O series expiry.
Announcements from the government on the relaxation of GST norms for specific sectors industries & goods etc. helped to boost the existing positive sentiments for the broad-based rally to continue.
Q) September series rollover data suggest bulls will most likely remain in control. What are the important levels that one should track in September? Can Nifty50 touch 12,000 levels in this expiry?
A) The Nifty September series commenced on a high note as market-wide rollover stood at almost 89% vs 87.85% with strong rollovers in both the indices as compared to their 3 months average.
The highlight throughout the August series was the FII action, which seems to continue in the September series as well.
The long-short ratio has jumped towards 75 percent indicating strong aggressive longs to be continued by the FII. Options bounds as of now state a likely range of 12000-11000 as 11000 PE strike commands the highest OI within the chain.
While 11500 is expected to be the mid-point of the range as denoted by the upper end of the rising trend line of the Broadening formation & reaffirmed by the OI concentration of PE & CE positions respectively.
Technically, the recent breakout from the ongoing ‘Broadening formation’ could see an extended towards 11800-12000 zone.
Since the rising trend line from 11550 levels of this Expanding/Broadening formation is also progressing along with the trend, any failure of the current breakout could be arrested in case the index again slips below 11450 from hereon.
With its daily RSI trending heading upwards, it is ideal to assume that despite the overbought state, the up move could continue until a reversal formation is witnessed.
Since upside looks limited as of now it is ideal for investors to ramp up their exposures into defensives while post the sharp upward movement traders should avoid leverage, and focus on stock-specific longs due to the overbought state of the indices.
Long Short positions for the current series could provide the necessary edge as upside from hereon could be restricted.
Q) In terms of sectors, action was in financials with banks taking the lead in terms of sectoral gainers followed by realty and auto. What led to the price action? In the coming week do you think Metals would be in limelight?
A) Banks remained under pressure compared to the rest of the markets for a substantial period while during the recent move there was a clear sign of the baton been passed on to them for the final sprint as its constituents too are witnessing a sharp catch-up rally.
Expectations that moratorium might not get extended beyond 31 August and growth seen in the loan books indicates that economic recovery is gradually underway.
Also, many of the banks have raised capital as they are preparing to boost their balance sheet early to play it safe in case of NPAs rise post the moratorium period, which has reaped them some early brownie points.
Raising of capital, economic recovery, and uncertainty regarding moratorium out of the way has been helping the sector catch up with other sectors.
Auto stocks have seen a run-up in anticipation of some relaxation in GST rates. Post lockdown recovery which happened in June has sustained in July and many of the auto ancillary makers are saying that they have a good order book for September.
We might also see a slight improvement of demand in the festive season and so all these developments have resulted in the upward movement of the auto as well as auto ancillary companies.
All the above factors more or less look priced in now as the sector could await for some fresh triggers going forward into the festive season.
Temporary stamp duty cut has changed the prospect and sentiment of realty companies especially the ones which have are focused in metro cities.
Construction companies are starting to see a lot of action on the upside as the announcement serves as yet another calling for fresh home buyers on an existing lowest borrowing rates & tax spos been laid by the government in the ongoing fiscal.
With reviving demand in China and Europe, metal stocks are looking good.
Selective outperformance had been expected & most of it now looks delivered as the Metal index saw relatively weak rollovers. Technically too it has now placed in close proximity of its long term declining resistance trend line, while its key constitutes have started displaying signs of exhaustion & reversals on their short term time scales.
Q) Mid & smallcap index has wiped out losses for the year 2020 compared to Sensex, or Nifty which still trade in the red. What is leading to optimism, and what are the factors which could steal the thunder for broader markets?
A) Many mid and small-cap stocks have registered three-digit gains since March lows while even the tail-enders within the sectors have been delivering double-digit gains since the last few weeks.
It looks like liquidity is now chasing growth instead of being risk-averse where participants poured liquidity into safe large caps. Mid-cap and small-cap space are likely to benefit when economy recovers fully and demand returns to normalcy.
Right now we are starting to see widespread recovery and so mid-cap and small-caps saw their mojo getting back purely based on liquidity rotations.
Any dent in sentiment or withdrawal of foreign funds from our market could steal the thunder for broader markets.
Q) What is your call on the rupee which touched 6-month high? How will it impact sectors and FII flows?
A) The Indian rupee has hit its 6 month high backed by robust foreign inflows (Approx. Rs 18141 cr month till date) and strength in our equity markets. One of the reasons rupee has appreciated sharply in recent time is the absence of OMO operations into dollar buying by RBI.
Usually, RBI supports rupee by increasing its foreign reserves whenever rupee appreciates. US Dollar’s weakness has also helped rupee in gaining strength.
Strong rupee would aid Indian exporters as our economy is struggling to remain competitive due to already slowing demand worldwide. It would also benefit the MNC & defensive stocks which are yet to get their share of the limelight.
Q) Please share 3-5 trading ideas for the coming week with a time horizon of 3-4 weeks.
A) Here is a list of five stocks which traders could consider for the next 3-4 weeks:
Sun Pharma: Buy| LTP: Rs 555| Target: Rs 610| Stop Loss: Rs 520| Upside 10%
The Pharma sector witnessed strong rollovers including Sun Pharma. Strong sectoral strength along with fresh breakout from a ‘Flag formation’ indicates the continuation of its existing up move.
The pattern target rests around 610 zone. Hence, fresh longs could still be added even on declines up to Rs 545 with a stop below Rs 520.
BlueDart Express: Buy| LTP: Rs 2250| Target: Rs 2630| Stop Loss: Rs 2040| Upside 16%
BlueDart Express has been trending lower after forming a high around 2015. In the last few months, the declining trend has been decelerating as its monthly RSI is also confirming a positive divergence.
The price structure looks like a ‘Falling Wedge’ which is about to witness a breakout. Usually falling wedge pattern occurrence in a declining trend is leading evidence of a bottoming trend.
Traders as well as investors should take advantage of a good risk-to-reward opportunity which is been presented by the pattern now.
In the long run, we expect Bluedart to witness an amplified up move towards Rs. 4180 once it closes above Rs. 2630.
Hence, long positions should be considered with a stop below Rs. 2040 even for positional longs for 3-4 weeks for an initial target up to Rs.2630 /Rs 2830.
Relaxo Footwear: Buy| LTP: Rs 660| Target: Rs 705| Stop Loss: Rs 620| Upside 7%
Relaxo witnessed a firm volume and price breakout on the final day of the week. The convergence of its 5 & 20-Weeks EMAs indicates that the momentum is likely to continue forward as its weekly RSI has jumped at 54 & closed above the crucial mark of 50 with a good margin.
Trading longs to be maintained with a stop below Rs.620 for an initial target up to Rs.705 followed by Rs.740.
Amara Raja Batteries: Sell| LTP: Rs 735| Target: Rs 670| Stop Loss: Rs 774| Downside 9%
The occurrence of Tweezer Top formation is a sign of exhaustion & likely reversals. Amara Raja Batteries has been gradually progressing upwards within a small ranged channel since 03 June 2020 when it registered the highest RSI reading above 70 when the stock registered a high around Rs.680 zone.
A breakdown from this narrow ranged channel could deform the structure & push the stock towards its 200 Days EMA placed around Rs.670 zone.
Hence, the up move should be utilised for fresh shorts with an anticipation of a break down rally towards 670 with a stop above Rs.774 (WCLBS)
Jindal Steel: Sell| LTP: Rs 216| Target: Rs 190| Stop Loss: Rs 232| Downside 12%
Jindal Steel now looks overbought & ready for a meaningful corrective action within its ongoing uptrend.
The occurrence of ‘Engulfing Bearish’ formation on its Daily & Weekly time frames is a sign of concern & could lead to a healthy corrective wave towards Rs.190.
A pullback towards Rs. 220 zone would make the setup more productive with its stop been placed around Rs.232.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. | sharp inflows and strong global sentiments have helped our market to push beyond 11600 levels on the Nifty. the ongoing rally got further steam due to its short-covering based move ahead of its august F&O series expiry. the long-short ratio has jumped towards 75 percent indicating strong aggressive longs to be continued by the FII. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/mutual-funds/international-funds-give-best-average-returns-in-may-bank-funds-worst-hit-5341641.html | Mutual fund schemes that invest in international markets have delivered the highest average return of 3.98 percent in May across all categories, according to the data by Value Research, a mutual fund research firm.
This category was the best performer in the calendar year 2019.
The domestic mutual fund schemes that invest in overseas markets are termed as international schemes.
Among schemes that registered the best returns in the international category were Edelweiss US Technology Equity FoF and PGIM Ìndia Global Opportunities Fund that delivered 10.75 percent and 10.65 percent average returns, respectively.
Mutual fund experts attributed the outperformance of international funds to the strong global market. Apart from that, they also said that rupee depreciation against the dollar had played a major role in the positive returns of these funds.
COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show
In the last one month, NASDAQ Composite has gone up 6.45 percent, Europe's CAC and FTSE Index gained nearly 2.16 percent, respectively. In comparison, BSE Sensex fell 0.4 percent last month.
In May, the Indian unit dropped by 10 paise to close at 75.62 against the dollar.
The decline in the value of the rupee against the dollar in recent weeks has benefitted international funds.
When an investor invests in an international fund, the money is invested in that particular overseas market in dollar-denominated assets.
The change in the price of these assets (foreign equities or bonds) during the period of your investment mainly drives the return of the fund.
But, apart from the performance of the underlying portfolio itself, the movement in the dollar-rupee exchange rate also contributes to the fund’s return.
Financial planners typically advise investors to invest about 10 percent in international funds.
These are mutual fund (MF) schemes launched by fund houses in India which solicit your money here and then invest it abroad.
Advisers are suggesting an investment in international funds as a means to diversify across countries and currencies due to volatility in Indian equities.
Apart from international funds, defensive pharma schemes also gave positive return of 2.37 percent last month.
Shares of major pharmaceutical companies and medical device makers have historically been considered defensive stocks. After all, there will always be sick people in need of care.
In May, when Sensex fell 0.4 percent, BSE Healthcare Index rose 2.6 percent.
Pharma Fund managers are of the view that improvement in business and ROE could lead to earnings growth and a sector rerating.
Pharma funds largely invest in pharmaceutical companies. It also invests in allied businesses such as hospitals, chemicals, healthcare services/diagnostics and financial services firms linked to this sector.
During the review period, schemes investing in bank stocks were worst performers across all categories. Bank funds delivered an average return of 9.85 percent in May.
In comparison, the benchmark S&P BSE Bankex Index fell 6.8 percent in May.
Banks that are considered as the backbone of the economy were battered heavily as investors expected the Coronavirus crisis to hit business and incomes, which in turn may lead to a spike in non-performing assets.
On the debt front, all debt schemes gave positive average returns in the range of 0.35-2.37 percent in May. | mutual fund schemes that invest in international markets delivered the highest average return of 3.98 percent in may. rupee depreciation against the dollar played a major role in the positive returns of these funds. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. a vaccine helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. a vaccine is a vaccine that is given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections of the population. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/red-hot-stock-rally-powered-by-companies-with-shaky-finances/articleshow/79576876.cms | Bloomberg
Bloomberg
The coronavirus is raging again. Whole states are at risk of closure, November payroll growth was anemic and solvency risk is bubbling back up. That stocks could rally amid such a backdrop should probably, by now, surprise nobody. That it’s happening on the back of firms with the worst balance sheets might. Companies with shakier finances rallied 4.3 per cent over the past five days, beating their sturdier counterparts for a fourth week, the longest streak in 13 months, data compiled by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bloomberg show. Up 25 per cent since the start of October, the weak-credit group is poised for its best quarter of relative performance since the last bull market began in 2009.While the reasons are well known -- progress on vaccines and stimulus -- the trade remains laden with risk, as animal spirits roar back alongside deteriorating business fundamentals for virus-stricken firms like Delta Air Lines Inc. and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. In the latest quarter, the number of junk-rated corporations borrowing in U.S. dollars that lost money before interest and other required expenses reached 47, according to a Bloomberg Intelligence analysis. That’s almost double the previous three months.“Clearly, leverage pays off in upcycles,” said John Porter, head of equities at Mellon Investments. “It pays to trade down in quality if you’re right that there is going to be a rising tide.”The resurgence is a turnaround from the early part of the year, when despite all the strength at the top of the market, shares of credit-impaired companies remained distantly behind. The cohort trailed the S&P 500 by 11 percentage points in the first six months after the bear-market trough on March 23. They were on top over the last five days, beating the index’s 1.7 per cent gain.As year-end approaches, with bankruptcy courts increasingly clogged, investors are pouring money into the market’s riskiest corners. They’re brushing aside insolvency risk and piling into zombies companies whose businesses are losing money even before servicing their debt. Their shares have surged 53 per cent on average this quarter, about 10 times the S&P 500.To be sure, gains aren’t confined to the stock market’s weakest links. On Friday, all four major indexes closed at record highs for the first time since January 2018. To David Sowerby, portfolio manager at Ancora Advisors, it’s not surprising that leveraged companies would lure investors at a time like now, since they’re the ones whose fortunes would improve fastest should a recovery take hold.“It’s more the acknowledgment that the cyclicals which can be associated with an eventual re-emergence of the economy are faring better,” he said. “I’m still very cognizant of the balance sheet when I’m adding to cyclicals. I’m not abandoning the strength of the balance sheet, how much debt they have, how much free cash flow they are generating.”Even so, the exuberance is on display across asset classes. In the corporate credit market, yields on junk-rated debt sank to a record low this week of just 4.45 per cent. Within high-yield, the average yield on CCC rated securities -- the bonds most at risk of default -- dropped to the lowest level since September 2014.“The bullishness is rampant,” said David Rosenberg, founder of Rosenberg Research & Associates Inc. “Life has been good for risk assets this year, once governments and central banks primed the pump like never before,” he added.“This is how asset bubbles are formed and we are in one now and could well be in one for years to come.” | companies with shakier finances rallied 4.3 per cent over the past five days. the longest streak in 13 months is now at a quarter-high of 4.3 per cent. the weak-credit group is poised for its best quarter since the last bull market began in 2009. the resurgence is a turnaround from the early part of the year. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/opinion/unleashing-new-forms-of-work-the-future-of-work-will-never-be-the-same-again-due-to-covid-pandemic/1962132/ | By Yogesh Suri & Sharmistha Sinha
Covid-19 has compelled many to work from home. This switch to digital work, en masse, has brought in a change in our perception of work and the way we think about working arrangements. New academic sessions have begun and communications have shifted from in-person classrooms to live online classes, new modes of instruction have been developed, courts have gone digital with cases being heard through videoconferencing, offices have shifted to e-office mode, there is a surge in digital payments, many musicians are streaming live performances from home. Google Meet’s day-over-day growth exceeded 60% and usage of Hangouts soared. It is not only Generation Z and Alpha who are adapting to this new system, but given the smartphone penetration even senior citizens are adapting to telemedicine, digital payments, etc.
Post-Covid-19, as normalcy returns, the world of work will not be the same again. It may well be an opportunity to transform into a digitally-enabled work environment.
It’s time India jumps into the next innovation line in the communication world. China, after the US, has boomed in the digital economy. WeChat, a messaging and payment app, is widely used, and Baidu has emerged as the most sought-after search engine leaving Google at a distant fifth in China. Apps such as TikTok, games like PUBG, to e-commerce sites like Club Factory are expanding their footprint, including in India.
India, which boasts of having one of the best IT specialists in the world, can use the developments in the cloud world to its advantage. We need to reach the next tech level where India can be the lead exporter in communication software. Why cannot we think of videoconferencing software in local languages that can be used by a wholesaler or used at local government levels? This requires technology, upskilling and reskilling in analytics, data management methods, online modules, investments and a favourable regulatory environment.
India has to enter this sector in a big way; we need high-level engagement at the intersection of ICT, human rights and surveillance activities. But this transformation delivers an array of cybersecurity challenges. With online activities, there are spikes in hacking, cyberscamming, ransomware attacks, which needs strict alert, strong encryption and actions.
There is a need to establish or strengthen state computer emergency response teams, and take steps to enhance cybersecurity capacity building and training, extending the Information Security Education & Awareness programme, introducing curricula, academia, establishment of forensics labs, etc. There is acute shortage of skilled resource persons, research and academic courses in this area. Gen Z can be trained to be specialists in Trustworthy Information Systems Engineering.
Governments have been making forays into usage of advanced technology in governance, and India is no different. Digital identities, financial inclusion, digital payments, DBT, government schemes expanded using IT and broadband, distance learning, e-commerce, etc, have changed the lives of people. Covid-19 has provided a major boost to these initiatives. Another important feature has been to connect with employees, customers and public using technology. Despite constraints, all these have worked fairly well in these distressed times.
People have got used to working from home, and this is expected to continue reducing employee costs in terms of maintaining offices. Another aspect of the future of work could be lower travel bills as organisations would prefer online meetings. As regards education, no one would have believed it was possible to study and teach online with such alacrity, and this is expected to lead to a sea change. Last but not the least, there has been increasing concern towards employees, customers and society in these times.
While it is unclear when the crisis will end, there are signs it may come sooner than later. As and when it resumes, one thing is clear, the future of work will never be the same again.
Suri is senior adviser, Governance and Research, and Sinha is deputy director, NITI Aayog. Views are personal | a shift in communication has brought in a change in our perception of work. offices have shifted to e-office mode and there is a surge in digital payments. it is time India jumps into the next innovation line in the communication world. china, after the us, has boomed in the digital economy. we need to reach the next tech level where India can be the lead exporter in communication software. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/economy/from-banaras-sarees-to-aligarh-locks-msmes-are-identity-of-economy-says-pm-modi-list-12-steps-for-revival/1370604/ | Highlighting the importance of medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs), Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said that they are the identity of the Indian economy — whether it is sarees of Banaras (Varanasi) or locks of Aligarh. “If agriculture is the backbone of the economy, MSMEs are giant steps taken to help the economy grow,” the prime minister said at the MSME Support and Outreach Program’ in Delhi.
He said that the government has taken 12 steps to revive the MSME sectors. “12 major decisions have been taken by central govt for MSME sector are proof that when after breaking silos, collective initiatives are taken, collective responsibilities are fulfilled, and collective decisions are taken,” Modi said.
Here’s what PM Modi said:
He said the first step taken by the government was to launch the 59-minute loan sanction portal, which will allow easy and quick credit up to Rs 1 lakh to small businesses.
Also Read – Loans up to Rs 1 crore to MSMEs in just 59 minutes: FM Jaitley launches credit portal; check key features here
The prime minister said that the GST-registered MSMEs will get a 2% rebate on the incremental loan of up to Rs 1 crore. The interest subvention on pre and post shipment credit for exports by MSMEs will be increased from 3% to 5%.
It is now mandatory for companies with a turnover of more than Rs 500 crore to join Trade Receivables e- Discounting System (TReDS) so that MSMEs do not face trouble in cash flow, PM Modi said.
Other steps announced by the government were ease in getting environmental clearances, streamlining of inspection and a Rs 6,000 crore package for technological upgradation among others
Terming the decisions “historic”, the prime minister said that they will make Diwali brighter for the MSME sector — millions of small entrepreneurs and employees. Modi also spoke on India’s recent success on Ease of Doing Business ranking, saying that making it into the top 50 was not far away. | prime minister said that the government has taken 12 steps to revive the MSME sectors. he said that the first step was to launch the 59-minute loan sanction portal, which will allow easy and quick credit up to Rs 1 lakh to small businesses. the interest subvention on pre and post shipment credit for exports by MSMEs will be increased from 3% to 5%. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/infrastructure/uks-deep-liquid-capital-markets-can-help-indias-infrastructure-needs-rishi-sunak/articleshow/78927388.cms | LONDON: UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak has hailed a series of "ambitious" new UK-India initiatives across investment, trade, infrastructure, sustainable finance and research as he highlighted the role to be played by the UK's capital markets in India's infrastructure development.The Indian-origin finance minister, addressing the UK-India Investing for Growth Forum on the sidelines of the UK-India 10th Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) on Wednesday, said that while a new Partnership on Infrastructure Policy and Financing will help catalyse private finance flows into India's ambitious National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), a new Sustainable Finance Forum would help green up the financial partnership between the two countries.According to a high-level task force, India's NIP has projected infrastructure investment of Rs 111 trillion during 2020-25."Sustainable finance provides a significant opportunity for the UK-India relationship. In the next 20 years, India is estimated to require USD 4.5 trillion of investment in sustainable infrastructure. The UK, with our deep and liquid capital markets, can play an enormous role in providing private finance to meet that need," said Sunak, in a virtual address to the summit."Building on the unique strengths each country brings to our partnership – the UK's deep and liquid capital markets and India's extraordinary economic dynamism – together we can build an ambitious and exciting economic partnership and through our close and cooperative working relationship, show the way to global recovery,” he said.The address followed his ministerial-level EFD dialogue, also held virtually with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman , earlier on Wednesday during which both sides concluded a broad range of agreements.A new annual Financial Markets Dialogue between India and the UK to remove regulatory and market access barriers for British and Indian firms, is set to kick start with a meeting early next year.It will be led by senior officials from the finance ministries of both countries and include the participation of financial regulators and private sector players."India holds huge potential for investors, and the Indian government's ambitious vision for infrastructure financing is a massive opportunity to drive the post-pandemic global economy forwards," said William Russell, the Lord Mayor of London."London has deep expertise in sustainable infrastructure investment, and this event is a huge opportunity to mobilise capital ahead of COP26," he said, in reference to the UK's presidency of the UN climate summit COP26 scheduled for November 2021.A new strategic partnership to accelerate the development of Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City as an international financial centre, including regulatory capacity building support for the new International Financial Services Centre Authority, was also flagged as a means to drive international capital flows from the City of London to India.“The UK is home to many world-class institutions from all stages of the investment lifecycle, from project conception to delivery and advisory. It is vital that we continue to leverage that expertise enabling us to collaborate ever more closely as we look ahead to COP26 in the UK next year,” said Catherine McGuinness, Policy Chair at the City of London Corporation.The corporation, the governing body of the financial hub of the UK capital known as the Square Mile, said the private sector led UK-India Sustainable Finance Working Group, established earlier with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( FICCI ), is already working on reducing barriers to sustainable investment.“Much needs to be done to unlock capital for sustainable growth, and together with the members of our working group, we hope to take practical actions in the coming 12 months to accelerate investment into India and deliver progress ahead of COP26,” said the co-chairs of the working group – Hitendra Dave, Head of Global Banking and Markets, HSBC India, and Richard Abel, MD, UK Climate Investments.The UK government highlighted that since its first EFD with India in 2007, bilateral trade between the two countries has more than doubled to nearly GBP 24 billion in 2019. | Chancellor hailed a series of "ambitious" new UK-India initiatives. he highlighted the role to be played by the uk's capital markets in India's infrastructure development. a new sustainable finance forum would help green up the financial partnership between the two countries. a new annual financial markets dialogue between the two countries is set to kick start with a meeting early next year. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/opinion/focus-on-industry-competitiveness-not-sectoral-subsidies-to-boost-growth-6269611.html | Economic activity picked up in India during the July-September quarter. Gross domestic product in the fiscal second quarter shrank by 7.5 percent compared with 23.9 percent contraction during April to June. While growth is expected to return in the October-December quarter due to festival season buoyancy and further lifting of restrictions, FY2020-21 could well end with economic output declining 5-10 percent. We are likely to see positive 5-10 percent growth in FY2021-22 restoring the economy to pre-COVID levels.
What gets missed out in such macro commentary is that the population would have grown as usual during this time thereby worsening per capita income. Even if nominal GDP grows at an average rate of 11.6 percent (estimated by CARE ratings as necessary to reach $5 trillion GDP in FY2026-27), it will take us till FY2035-36 to reach the current levels of per capita income enjoyed by other BRICS countries. Therefore, we need to create conditions for decades of rapid and inclusive growth.
Short term factors that have aided the partial recovery
The government’s economic relief packages have helped the economy by combining a consumption boost (cash transfers), government spending (on health, MNREGA and capex), and support for the corporate sector (credit guarantees and loan moratoriums). Green shoots in manufacturing, the sustained performance of agriculture and recent policies such as cash for LTC will help to sustain demand till the next quarter. Advance indicators of economic activity such as PMI, vehicle sales, freight, GST revenues, electricity production, non-food credit etc. are looking better even though most sectors are still operating below full capacity. The threat of infections is still there but the pandemic curve has flattened and people and businesses have learnt to live with the virus. Except for contact-intensive sectors like hospitality, travel and tourism, there is visible momentum in most other sectors.
Long term policies needed to accelerate growth
The government has to sustain spending on infrastructure without raising the deficit to unsustainable levels. Many experts have urged the government to spend significantly more without explaining how to manage the ballooning deficit that may either hurt the rupee (and increase import costs) or necessitate money printing (compromising the RBI’s independence). Therefore, it is better to combine necessary fiscal relief with structural reforms (changes in rules that help the economy but do not cost money). Like the farm reforms bill, a few more radical steps (e.g. in land, labour, banking) are needed to signal that the government would not participate in economic activity but act as a facilitator.
The pandemic has sharpened economic inequality across the globe but widening of income gaps hurts a developing country more. Social safety nets are crucial for survival as we have seen during the pandemic. The government has to enhance the cash transfer mechanism, digital literacy and financial inclusion so that, in the next crisis, cash can be quickly transferred to migrant workers and the homeless. The right to work scheme can be extended to urban areas so that a fall back option is available if the economy nosedives again.
Yet we must recognize that there are limits to how much equity can come from fiscal spending and therefore focus on increasing opportunities for people and markets. To give an example from the health sector, India has 0.78 doctors per 1000 people compared to 1.98 in China and 2.17 in Brazil. This gap cannot be met by government spending alone but by allowing the private sector to set up more medical colleges while the government works on regulation. Similarly, the government must step out from telecom, airlines, energy, hotels and devote its energy to encouraging investments, framing clear rules and setting up single window system for approvals. The government must restore the IBC once the economy recovers and increase the use of digitisation in its service delivery to reduce personal interactions. In spite of the improvements in India’s ease of doing business rank, according to the World Bank, the average time required to get an electricity connection in India is 53 days, to register property is 58 days and to enforce a contract is 1445 days. It is hard to compete with other economies in the region unless India offers a more conducive environment for business.
Finally, our experience over the past decades has been that sectoral economic policies create discretion and lobbying (as seen from agriculture to airlines). Policies like the production linked incentives scheme can elicit some success but will distort price signals. It is better to focus on improving general competitiveness of the industry than give sectoral subsidies. The NITI Aayog can help by devising a national economic strategy (not plan) which will provide the road map for converting the entire country into a special economic zone instead of tinkering with select sectors. | economic activity picked up in india during the July-September quarter. growth is expected to return in the October-December quarter. but we are likely to see positive 5-10 percent growth in FY2021-22. it will take us till FY2035-36 to reach the current levels of per capita income enjoyed by other BRICS countries. despite the threat of infections, people and businesses have learned to live with the virus. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/about-9-3-mn-sq-ft-of-real-estate-space-to-be-developed-for-data-center-industry-by-2025-jll-india/2059783/ | An additional 9.3 million sq ft of real estate space is expected to be developed by 2025 for the rapidly growing data center industry at an investment of USD 1.03 billion (about Rs 7,700 crore), JLL India said on Wednesday. “Indian data center industry’s capacity is expected to grow to 1,078 MW by 2025 from 375 MW in H1 2020…,” the real estate consultant said in a report. MW indicates IT power load. Mumbai is expected to witness the highest capacity addition of around 360 MW, followed by Chennai with a capacity addition of 134 MW.
Total capacity addition of 703 MW by 2025 is expected to add 9.3 million sq ft of real estate space. “Potential real estate development of 9.3 millon sq ft worth USD 1.03 billion by 2025…Construction and development of data center space in India to need a total investment of USD 1.03 billion,” the report said. JLL India estimated that data center industry would present a total of USD 4.9 billion (about Rs 36,700 crore) greenfield investment opportunity for real estate developers and investors during the next five-and-a-half years.
As the data center industry is closely linked with telecom sector dynamics, JLL said the recent announcements by Reliance industries in areas of digital connectivity, 5G services and strategic partnership for cloud services are going to influence the growth in this segment. “As the world’s second largest data subscriber population increasingly adapts to a new digital world, India’s data center industry is expected to travel through an interesting transition phase in terms of operators, locations and technology,” the report said.
India’s data center industry has provided immense boost to the digital economy during H1 2020. “From an average 270 petabytes (PB) to 308 PB during week of March 22nd, a 14 per cent rise in daily data consumption was observed during the lockdown,” it said. There was a 12 per cent rise in data consumption in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, while there was a 7 per cent increase in data consumption in Maharashtra.
In terms of total additional supply, there has been an increase of 8 per cent in H1 2020, taking India’s total co-location capacity to 375 MW. The first half of 2020 also witnessed supply addition of 27 MW, 56 per cent of the total addition seen in 2019 (48 MW). “India’s data center market will outperform over the next five years, supported by a combination of growing digital economy, increased investor interest and stable long-term returns,” said Ramesh Nair, CEO & Country Head, India, JLL. | data center industry is closely linked to telecom sector dynamics. recent announcements by Reliance industries in areas of digital connectivity, 5G services and strategic partnership for cloud services are going to influence the growth. Mumbai is expected to witness the highest capacity addition of around 360 MW. total capacity addition of 703 MW by 2025 is expected to add 9.3 million sq ft of real estate space. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/brandwagon/writers-alley/decoding-the-way-ahead-for-the-consumer-electronics-category-from-an-online-commerce-perspective/1984507/ | By Sabiha Khan and Sahil Shah
Over 60 days of lockdown, a massive slump in business, and giant bouts of uncertainty looming large on all our heads – it’s a scenario we all relate to and understand only too well. The economy has been hit really hard and according to industry experts one way to revival is for brands and retailers to tap into the surge of demand for online commerce that has been induced by the lockdown. The accelerated boost in e-commerce (from existing and new online customers) that has been noticed due to the lockdown is an opportunity that one should leverage. If the question ‘how’ popped in your mind, read on.
Consumer Electronics – Non-essential bust?
Consumer electronics as a category has always been big on online marketplaces. Now contrary to popular opinion, consumers have not just been turning to e-commerce for essentials but also non-essentials. While there were fears that due to the restrictions imposed on non-essentials, growth in this category had slumped majorly, there is enough and more evidence showcasing significant recovery. According to research from Forrester, a recovery rate of 35% was noticed in the first week of lockdown 3.0, with order volumes increasing significantly. Searches on Google for Air-conditioners, Smart TV prices, big screen TVs, dishwashers, have been on the rise, and this fact is corroborated by the fact that brands are also seeing inquiries coming in for these products as well as searches on online marketplaces for these products are increasing. Interestingly, according to Amazon, dishwashers sold 31 times more than pre-Covid-19 levels and robotic vacuums sold 33 times more compared to before the lockdown. With salons shut, search for trimmers increased 4.5 times on Flipkart and PayTm Mall saw an overall increase of 1.5 times in demand for consumer electronics overall.
Consumer Trends – The Post-Covid Difference
A lot has shifted for the regular Indian consumer in terms of behaviour as well as preferences. Understanding these trends can help brands decide which products to focus on and leverage online.
The need to work-from-home/ learn-from-home has resulted in the need for investments in additional work-systems particularly for larger families that operated only on one work system until now
There is an emergence of a new kind of ‘Home essentials’ category – Non essential products for a lot of people like ovens, microwaves, dishwashers, eyebrow upper-lip hair removal pens, epilators, have now turned essential due to social distancing norms that prevent access to human assistance, thus giving rise to the need for “chore convenience”
Home entertainment is no longer a luxury but more a necessity and will continue to emerge as a key area, as people will continue to take precautions with respect to stepping out in public
Consumers will be anxious where installations/ demos and maintenance/ servicing is concerned. Hence, online tutorials to fix products, remote access checking, safety stipulations, etc. may become the norm because of long term social distancing
Authenticity of products will continue to remain a concern and consumers will seek ways to assure themselves of the same
Due to financial constraints, consumers may look at a down-grade in terms of product purchase
Apart from this there is now a wave of first time online buyers who showcase some differences compared to the regular online buyers:
First time online buyers will be more prone towards low-to medium ticket size products and using cash-on-delivery rather than a prepaid service. Additionally, they will need hand- holding wrt online financial options to convince them towards larger ticket items
Possibly they will be comfortable with vernacular languages and will be from Tier II/III cities
Will be shopping online through a mobile phone and hence data used/ time to load/ ease of navigation/ product photos/ etc. will become extremely important
How can brands navigate through the storm online?
There is clearly a propulsion where the e-commerce market for consumer electronics is concerned. Products that seemed not so popular (dishwashers/ robotic vacuum cleaners) have started increasing in relevance for consumers. So how does one take advantage?
Definitely get your hygiene in place: While this may seem like the most mundane of things to do, it is the most important of all, especially to improve discoverability. Make sure your A+ content is in place and your brand stores across online marketplaces are updated. Shoppers like to make informed purchases. As a brand, make sure you identify highlights and lowlights of your products from reviews, compile or update an existing list of frequently asked questions, and respond to customers as they reach out.
Solve Warehousing in the short term and plan for Omnichannel in the long term: Of the many reasons online consumers give for abandoning their cart, some of the most common excuses revolve around problems with fulfillment. As such leveraging automation and third-party logistics including opting for marketplace driven options like (Fulfilled by Amazon) to take care of supply chain issues would be beneficial. In the long term, consider going omnichannel ( like MI ) and adopting multiple fulfillment options. One way to go omni- channel could be through establishment of specific OR conversion of certain non- performing retail outlets into “dark stores” or “hybrid stores”, to facilitate a ‘click and collect’ model of order fulfillment.
Ensure your digital content addresses consumer concerns: Instill consumer confidence by communicating the adoption of safety measures especially with respect to contact-less delivery + contact-less installation and contact-less servicing. For example, brands like Sony, Samsung, Panasonic, Haier and Godrej Appliances, etc. are leveraging Livechat, WhatsApp, DIY video as well as on-call assistance, on a real-time basis and also putting up content for consumers to check on their appliances themselves. Additionally, do not wait for the tide to turn, act now to stay top-of mind by encouraging consumers towards a call to action like for example, encouraging them to “add to wishlist” or provide a pre-booking incentive.
Leverage Vernacular + Colloquialism effectively: It is important to understand how the audience is referring to your products or what is the colloquial way in which they refer to a particular product so as to capture that in your search keywords online. For example: Racold innovatively deployed a phonetically influenced keyword strategy based on the search input of its audience looking for geysers online. This has now become a regular practice on Amazon. Here’s the casetudy. Also, be on the lookout for more vernacular languages adoption; for instance, Paytm Mall has around 10 languages in which listings can be accessed, thus opening new markets/ opportunities.
Go PWAMP, Go Mobile: We all know that mobile is going to be the key facilitator for online commerce, so focus on getting a mobile first ecommerce strategy in place. Progressive Web Apps + Accelerated Mobile Pages together drive efficiency of page loads & effectiveness of better commerce. Thus, use this advanced technology to create websites that have the look and feel of a mobile app and can be accessed with or without the mobile app installation. Plus, increase SEO thereby discoverability, as Google algorithm recognizes and promotes such pages faster. Also, on owned platforms, leverage 360 images, high definition photos + product videos which can help understand the product better by taking into consideration both screen size and screen resolution – especially for high ticket appliances like refrigerators/ smart TVs, etc.
Bring your offline retailers and distributors online: Recognize digital as a key element in your consumer journey. By bringing your offline retailers and distributors online you can facilitate e-commerce avenues for them which in turn helps build better relations. Samsung is a frontrunner in this and has facilitated many digital interventions for its offline retailers to help them take advantage of the online demand.
Owned versus Marketplace: Yes, you should have an ecommerce operation that belongs to the brand. The primary reason for this is data. When a customer directly buys online from you, it helps you to collect first-party data that you may utilize to personalize your marketing efforts including after-sales efforts (servicing reminders, software upgrades, etc.) which are very crucial in the consumer electronics industry. If you are existing in a high ASP category and have a range of products, then you must think of building first party data & a CRM around it. Brands that treat data seriously will survive in the digital economy in the long run. There will be no third-party data in the future as privacy increasingly becomes a concern across the world and in India . And besides data, an owned platform also earns a fair amount of trust from the consumer while the brand is able
Threat of Private Label Brands: Online retail partners (like Amazon) have increasingly started offering private label products which were originally manufactured by established brands. This trend is noticed very strongly among kitchen appliances, home electronics, and personal electronics where the consumer is looking for better value and is not necessarily brand loyal. Hence, by selling directly to consumers some of this threat can be mitigated.
Go for outcome based media: From now onwards, look at every rupee spent from a ROI point of view – which means all your digital marketing efforts should drive intent and in- market consumers to take action. Additionally, the digital spends mix should have a significant part allocated to spends on eComm platforms. Besides search there are lots of in-market audience ads once can opt for, on the platform and even off it. For instance, through partnerships like Flipkart X Disney Hotstar one can target Flipkart audiences on Disney Hotstar’s Content or using the upcoming Amazon DSP to leverage the most realistic in-market audiences across the internet. Essentially, look at all spends that drive incremental or exponential growth for your business.
Conclusion
With Consumer Electronics projected to grow at 11% CAGR till 2025 in India; eCommerce with its almost double-digit growth of 20% CAGR will play a significant role. And not just that, we strongly feel that a large portion of the Consumer Electronics business is going to be influenced by digital and we advise you to think very hard on all aspects of “digital enabled commerce” and take that moonshot, now, more than ever! Also, while you spruce up your digital commerce efforts, keep an eye out for niche opportunities with respect to re-commerce or resale/ renting of products, given the emerging consumer needs.
Lastly, in the words of Bob Willett, former president of Best Buy International – “The sooner we drop the ‘e’ out of ‘e-commerce’ and just call it commerce, the better.” Too many of us feel daunted by the term “e-commerce” and as such treat it as a separate entity when you should actually be including it as a part of your business as usual. #EcommerceEssentialHai, just has some different rules but it definitely deserves a valid seat at the table.
Sabiha Khan is VP, strategy, planning and new business of WATConsult while Sahil Shah is executive vice president, WATConsult | consumer electronics as a category has always been big on online marketplaces. recovery rate of 35% was noticed in the first week of lockdown 3.0. search for trimmers increased 4.5 times on flipkart and PayTm mall. e-commerce is booming as more people are turning to e-commerce. a new kind of work-from-home/ learn-from-home is emerging. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/opinion-how-the-reserve-bank-of-new-zealand-continues-to-develop-monetary-policy-3788281.html | Amol Agrawal
In December 1989, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) adopted inflation targeting. After the breakdown of Bretton Woods and the stagflation episode, central banks had shifted their attention primarily towards managing inflation. Central banks adopted Milton Friedman’s monetary targeting approach where money supply was targeted for managing inflation and inflationary expectations. However, the monetary targeting framework did not achieve the desired results as central banks found it difficult to control the supply of money.
In a remote corner of the world, RBNZ decided to tweak its policies and instead adopted inflation targeting (IT). Under IT, the central bank would target a level of inflation and use interest rates to achieve the desired inflation level. In a speech at the IMF in 2000, David J. Archer, then Assistant Governor of RBNZ, explained how the shift to IT was driven by “least bad of the alternatives available, rather than as the scaling of the intellectual high ground.” He also explained how the key idea was rooted in public sector reform where the government sets the goals and gives professional managers the freedom to pursue those goals. Though a few would have imagined that this practice would soon capture the imagination of monetary economists and central bankers all over the world.
This framework soon became the new gold standard of central banking. After NZ, a spate of countries such as Sweden, Canada, Australia adopted IT. Bank of England, which so far had set the standards for central bankers also adopted inflation targeting in 1998. India too adopted inflation targeting in 2015 after debating the idea for many years. As of 2018, 40 countries had implemented the framework. Usually, most of these countries have either fully floating or managed floating exchange rates.
The advent of inflation targeting led to some other developments in the area of central banking. First, in terms of the central bank’s autonomy, it was understood that governments will set the inflation target and central banks will have operational autonomy to achieve the goal. Second, one saw large-scale changes in the way central banks communicate with markets.
Interestingly, inflation did decline in countries which adopted inflation targeting. However, some researchers questioned this success, citing that the US economy also managed low inflation in that era without adopting inflation targeting. Some researchers cited globalisation and low oil prices as key reasons for the decline in inflation and some even suggested good luck.
The major shock for inflation targeting came via the 2008 crisis. The crisis questioned the central bankers’ one-dimensional focus on price stability while ignoring financial instability which led to the crisis. The central banks were also criticized for ignoring growth and employment in their objectives. There were calls to either drop the IT framework or replace it with a broader framework which includes both growth and financial stability.
Central bankers responded to the above criticism by saying that IT framework was never really one-dimensional. Most central banks adopted “flexible inflation targeting” which gives due importance to growth while keeping inflation under target. Only when inflation is under check, a broad-based and equitable growth is possible. Further, they added as guardians of the payment system, it is not the case that they skipped financial stability completely. Given this back and forth, one has not seen any inflation targeting central bank drop the framework. In fact, the likes of India adopted IT after the crisis and some others like Jamaica are looking to adopt it soon.
Having said that, RBNZ has not been sitting on its success. Just like it gave a solution to the world with its IT framework, it is trying to do the same to the two new challenges of unemployment and financial stability.
First, the New Zealand government has broadened the goals of the central bank and added employment to the inflation targeting mandate in 2018. This is not really novel, as Federal Reserve had a dual mandate of both price stability and unemployment. However, RBNZ's move to a dual mandate would be noticed by other IT central banks. RBNZ Governor Adrian Orr in his statement (2018) said: “The Reserve Bank’s flexible inflation targeting regime has long included employment and output variability in its deliberations on interest rate decisions. What this PTA does is make it an explicit expectation that the Bank accounts for that consideration transparently. Maximum sustainable employment is determined by a wide range of economic factors beyond monetary policy.”
Accordingly, the central bank, while continuing with its mandate of keeping CPI inflation between 1 and 3 percent, will also look at two more objectives: efficiency and soundness of the financial system; avoid unnecessary instability in output, employment, interest rates, and the exchange rate. Thus, unlike a specified inflation target, there is no such target for the other two variables.
The central bank has also shifted the responsibility of setting monetary policy from the Governor to the Monetary Policy Committee. This has been a practice in many central banks and something which surprisingly was not there in NZ. However, its initial selection of MPC members shows a lot of promise with three experts in different fields like agriculture economics, fiscal policy and trade union movement.
Second, to promote financial stability, the central bank has proposed to double the capital level held by banks currently. It has recently put up a detailed proposal on how it plans to achieve these capital levels. This too has surprised economists given the state of the desired recapitalisation.
Third, for increasing central bank transparency, RBNZ has developed one of its kind financial dashboard which is highly user-friendly. The dashboard available at the website allows the users to plug and play around the financial variables of all NZ-based banks. The initiative won the award for “Initiative of the year” by CentralBanking.com. Key people behind the design of the dashboard said that the “sheer volume of disclosure had become very large… and it was difficult to compare one bank with another, and thus banks didn’t come under widespread scrutiny”. Thus, “We wanted to invent something that was accessible.”
To sum up, it is interesting that after pioneering monetary policy in the last 30 years, RBNZ is now planning to do the same in unemployment and financial stability as well. Other central banks have a lot to learn.
(Amol Agrawal is faculty at Ahmedabad University. The views expressed here are his own) | after the breakdown of Bretton Woods, central banks shifted their attention primarily towards managing inflation. the monetary targeting framework did not achieve the desired results. in a remote corner of the world, RBNZ decided to tweak its policies and instead adopted inflation targeting (IT) it would target a level of inflation and use interest rates to achieve the desired inflation level. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/retail/despite-coronavirus-indian-traders-stock-up-in-hopes-of-festive-cheer/articleshow/78802337.cms | JAIPUR/NEW DELHI: Indian businesses are stocking up more ahead of this year's big festival season than at any time in the last five years, expecting people whose earnings were relatively unaffected by the pandemic to spend the money they saved during months of lockdowns.India's biggest shopping season is at the time of the festivals of Durga Puja and Diwali , which fall 20 days apart in October-November each year. Traditionally, this is a time when houses are re-decorated, big-ticket items purchased, feasts held and gifts exchanged.Businesses and shopkeepers expect more purchases than usual this year, beginning with Durga Puja on Thursday, because the months of lockdowns have resulted in pent-up demand.Recent data shows that demand for diesel, power and cars has already picked up, and any resurgence of retail buying of everything from phones to furniture would bode well for India's economy that shrank 23.9% in the quarter ended June - its steepest decline.Brokerage firm Nomura said its India business-resumption index for the week that ended on Oct. 18 hit its highest level since the country first imposed a lockdown in late March to contain the coronavirus.Big retailers such as Croma and Vijay Sales , both dealing mainly in electronics and home appliances, told Reuters sales in recent days indicated that this holiday season could be better than last year and that they were actually worried about tightening inventory in certain categories like entry-level laptops and high-end televisions.The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said its 70 million small businesses on average were planning for a buffer stock of around 14% this season compared with last year's 10%, to ensure they don't run out of goods should demand surge."In the last two months, despite facing a financial crunch, we have been procuring goods in anticipation that in the festive season we will have considerable footfalls," said Praveen Khandelwal, the group's secretary general, seated in his home-fittings shop in Delhi's Karol Bagh area."Our expectation is that this will be the best Diwali for us in at least five years. Naturally, our stocks levels will be as high too."Customer arrivals this month have already been the highest in about seven months, hovering around 10 per shop on average - still only about a third of the normal level but expected to rise, Khandelwal said.But not everyone is as enthusiastic. Shops and factories in the city of Jaipur, typically bustling with local and foreign tourists, did little business on a warm afternoon this week.Traders there said they had laid off staff as the city's key income source of tourism was still feeble and it did not have as many salaried people as places like Delhi."Until a vaccine is out, I think we will keep operating at 30-35% of pre-COVID levels," said Suresh Tak, owner of four clothes shops and factories printing designs on fabrics.Even Google 's mobility data from last week for West Bengal, India's fourth-most populous state where Durga Puja is the main festival, showed that people were mainly visiting supermarkets and pharmacies, not retail and recreation facilities.Thousands of miles away in the rural district of Satara in India's west, Nilesh Kadam says he is trying to save as much as he can, having returned to work only recently."From June to August the company had given me a break as there wasn’t much work at the factory," said the 35-year old, whose company makes steel products. "This year I am not planning to make any big-ticket purchase."Still, CAIT estimates Indians have amassed about 1.5 trillion rupees ($20 billion) in savings since April, a chunk of which could now be directed to holiday shopping.Online retailers Amazon and Walmart Inc's local unit Flipkart have also kicked off their annual sales events with heavy discounts. Flipkart said on Wednesday sales have tripled for more than 35% of its sellers this year and that there were "green shoots of recovery for everyone across the value chain".Hindustan Unilever Ltd, the Indian arm of Unilever , on Tuesday reported higher sales and profits for the September quarter and said its rural markets had been more "resilient" than the big cities."We believe the worst is behind us and we are cautiously optimistic on demand recovery," Chairman Sanjiv Mehta said on an earnings call. | india's biggest shopping season is at the time of the festivals of Durga Puja and Diwali. businesses expect more purchases than usual this year, beginning with Durga Puja on Thursday. demand for diesel, power and cars has already picked up. a resurgence of retail buying of everything from phones to furniture would bode well for india's economy. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/markets/market-perspective/sensex-nifty-end-higher-for-fifth-straight-session-banking-stocks-outperform/story/405701.html | Sensex and Nifty closed higher on Tuesday, in line with strong global equities amid heavy buying in media, auto and banking stocks. Extending rise for the fifth straight session, Sensex ended 522 points higher at 33,825 and Nifty rose 152 points to 9,979.
Banking stocks led the rally in early trade with Bank Nifty trading 251 points or 1.26% higher at 20,208. Sectorally, all indices gained with media, financials, banking and auto stocks registering maximum buying momentum, while PSU stocks fell.
Kotak Bank, M&M, Tata Motors, Hindalco, Bajaj Finance were among the top gainers on Nifty. On the contrary, Coal India, L&T, ITC, ICICI Bank and BPCL were among the major losers.
Analysts said Sensex and Nifty continued their upward momentum despite Moody's credit rating downgrade and highest spike in fresh cases of Covid-19.
Commenting on today's trend, Ajit Mishra, VP - Research, Religare Broking,"Market further gained momentum, encouraged by the PM's speech at CII session that India's economy would get back on track as the government is working towards systematic reforms which boosted investors' sentiments."
Further, global investors were also optimistic over slowing of new virus cases, with prospects of more government stimulus amid easing of lockdowns across the world.
Domestic equities opened higher, although gained momentum by the afternoon session today after European markets opened in green with lockdown restrictions easing in major countries amid hopes of fresh government stimulus. While Germany's DAX rose 2% after a holiday on Monday, CAC and FTSE were gaining marginally higher.
Asian markets traded modestly higher on Tuesday, despite tension between the US and China still linger on as investors weighed resumption of business activities as economies return to normalcy.
US markets closed higher on Monday as investors factored in the potential for an economic rebound overlooking civil unrest in cities.
Experts said market sentiments continued Buoyancy from yesterday after the government announced its phase-wise plan to unlock the country, starting June 1.
Vinod Nair- Head of Research- Geojit Financial Services said, "The uptrend in most major sectoral indices continued while the broader markets have also participated. In spite of many possible negative triggers, positive sentiment still drives the markets and would advise sticking to quality stocks."
As per technical indicators, with the index's strong push in the recent trades, Nifty is expected to aim for 10,000 mark.
Expressing views on Nifty's near-term outlook, Deepak Jasani, Head Retail Research, HDFC Securities said,"Technically the Nifty has made a higher top after making a higher bottom on May 18. It could now after a brief consolidation rise towards 10295-10334. On falls, 9824-9889 could offer support."
On Nifty Bank's technical indicators, Rohit Singre, Senior Technical Analyst at LKP Securities said, "Nifty Bank closed a day at 20616 with gains of more than 3 per cent, support is coming near 20225-20000 zone and resistance is coming near 20866-21100 zone"
Meanwhile, Motherson Sumi, Zydus Wellness, InterGlobe Aviation, Eris, Britannia, Granules, Dhampur Sugar Mills, Tata Teleservices, Transport Corporation of India, Sun Pharma Advanced Research among others will announce their Q4 results today.
On the currency front, Rupee ended higher at 75.36 per US dollar as against the last closing value of 75.55 per dollar today.
On Rupee's positive trend today, Sugandha Sachdeva VP-Metals, Energy & Currency Research, Religare Broking said,"Sentiments have got a boost on gradual unlocking of the domestic economy and as President Trump has not pulled off the Phase I trade deal with China signed in January. Market are now pinning their hopes on global recovery and shrugging off concerns about the deepening rift between the US and China and the damaging effect of the virus on the global economy."
Banking stocks lead rally in early trade; Kotak Bank, IndusInd Bank top gainers
Stocks in news: Yes Bank, Eicher Motors, Tata Power, TVS Motor, Hero MotoCorp, RIL, Ashok Leyland and more
Kotak Mahindra Bank stock rises 8% as Uday Kotak to sell 2.8% stake
Share Market LIVE: Sensex gains 300 points, Nifty at 9,915; M&M, Tata Motors, Kotak Bank top gainers | Sensex and Nifty close higher on Tuesday, in line with strong global equities. media, financials, banking and auto stocks register maximum buying momentum. domestic equities open higher, but gained momentum by the afternoon session. u.s. markets open higher on monday, despite tension between the us and china. u.s. and uk markets closed higher on monday. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/jobs/job-offers-at-premier-undergrad-colleges-belie-slowdown-average-packages-zoom/articleshow/74289101.cms | MUMBAI: Job offers poured in at the country’s leading undergraduate colleges from old and first-time recruiters with average salaries increasing up to 45%, despite a slowdown in the local economy and job market.Recruiters flocked institutions such as Lady Shri Ram College (LSR), Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) and St Stephen’s College in Delhi; and Loyola College in Chennai to woo fresh talent. Average salaries at LSR and SRCC increased to about Rs 10 lakh from about Rs 7.5 lakh per annum last year. At Loyola, the average salaries were around Rs 6.23 lakh a year compared with Rs 4.25 lakh last year.A final-year commerce student at LSR has bagged a salary offer of Rs 30 lakh for an entry-level role in India with a consulting company, while another commerce student at SRCC got an offer of Rs 31 lakh from EY-Parthenon. LEK Consulting made an offer of Rs 29.3 lakh to another student at the same institution. At Loyola, the highest offer was Rs 10.25 lakh by Federal Bank, a first-timer on its campus this year. Comparatively, the average pay for freshers at the leading Indian Institutes of Management at Ahmedabad, Bengaluru and Kolkata ranges from Rs 20 lakh to Rs 28 lakh per annum. At newer IIMs, it is between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 20 lakh.“We haven't seen an overall impact of the (economic) slowdown in placements,” said Kanika K Ahuja, an associate professor at the department of psychology and the placement in-charge at Lady Shri Ram College for Women “The number of companies coming has more or less remained the same since last year, however the number of students that were made an offer to have increased,” she said, adding that there were companies that were expanding business and needed more talent.The placement season for colleges mostly commences around July-August and ends between March and May. Top recruiters included Gartner, Accenture, Samsung, Marico, PwC, Red-Seer Consulting, GEP Consulting, Deloitte USI, EY Global Delivery Services, Bain Capability Network and JPMorgan & Chase, among others.“Apart from the increase in the interest of top-tier firms in hiring talent from SRCC, the number of firms conducting a pooled campus drive between top undergraduate colleges of DU (Delhi University), namely SRCC, LSR and Stephens has increased,” said Vikram Nanda, the placement cell chief secretary at SRCC, which saw a host of first-time recruiters including Gartner, American Express, InMobi, Marico, RedSeer Consulting, among others.The last couple of years had seen an increasing trend of companies extending the search for talent beyond Bschools and IITs, as they have started accepting graduate colleges as a good source that can give them a diverse pool of talent coming from backgrounds such as economics, commerce, statistics and mathematics. | average salaries at the top colleges have increased by 45%. a final-year commerce student at lsr has bagged a salary offer of Rs 30 lakh. at loyola, the highest offer was Rs 10.25 lakh by federal bank. top recruiters include Gartner, Accenture, Samsung, Marico, PwC, Red-Seer Consulting, GEP Consulting, Deloitte USI, EY Global Delivery Services and JPMorgan & Chase. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/lamborghini-india-wants-to-continue-growth-momentum-in-2020-4895291.html | Super sports car manufacturer Lamborghini is looking to maintain the growth momentum in India although the super luxury segment has been hit due to slowdown in the automobile sector in the country, an official said here on Sunday.
In 2019, Lamborghini India sold 52 cars, registering a 15 percent growth over the previous year, the official said.
"We want to maintain the growth momentum in 2020. But by how much, it is not possible to say, as market sentiments are unpredictable," Lamborghini India head Sharad Agarwal said.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the launch of 'Huracan EVO RWD', a super sports car, here, Agarwal said the super luxury segment (cars priced above Rs 2.5 crore) is "not big" in the country.
"In 2019, sales in the super luxury segment were at 260, lower than 315 in 2018. This is because of the slowdown in the automobile sector in the country," he said, adding that the segment is expected to grow in 2020.
"It is not to decline," Agarwal said, mentioning that the super sports car category falls under the super luxury segment.
Lamborghini, a part of Volkswagen group, is leading the market in the segment with a 20 per cent share, he said.
The company, which has its sole manufacturing plant at Sant'Agata Bolognese in Italy, has three models in India, namely, super sports utility vehicle (SSUV) 'Urus', super sports cars 'Aventador' and 'Huracan'.
Agarwal said that the biggest market for the carmaker in the country is south India which contributes more than 50 per cent of its sales.
"The markets of Kolkata and the east are also growing," he said, adding that the company has three dealers in Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai.
The cars are shipped as CBUs (Completely Built Up) to India, he added. | Lamborghini India sold 52 cars in 2019, registering a 15 percent growth over the previous year. sales in the super luxury segment were at 260, lower than 315 in 2018. the super luxury segment is expected to grow in 2020. the biggest market for the carmaker in the country is south india. 'we want to maintain the growth momentum in 2020,' says head of the company. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/brandwagon/titan-company-to-up-digital-marketing-spends-by-50-for-its-watches-division/2064504/ | Consumer goods company, Titan Company Limited, plans to increase its digital ad spends by 50% for the watches and wearables division in FY 21, Suparna Mitra, chief executive officer, watches and wearables division, Titan Company Limited told BrandWagon Online. “Our advertising spends for this year will be lower than FY20- but it’s difficult to put a specific number to it. Much of this will depend on the rate of sales recovery. However, the proportion of digital ad spends will rise,” she added. The company claimed to have spent about Rs 100 crore in advertising on watches in FY 20.
According to the company, sales have started to pick up since June and July with the company recording an increase of 30%-40% across channels. “Traditionally, digital channels contributed to around 15% of the sales. This contribution has approximately doubled in the first few months post lockdown,” Mitra noted. Further, the company claims that a large segment of consumers who still prefer to shop offline — are now using online channels to browse through products, before purchasing through stores. As a result, the company has begun to gradually increase advertising across traditional media such as print and television. So far, the company has been able to recover little less than 10% of its sales, compared to pre-Covid times.
To be sure, the company is aiming at a complete recovery of sales by the last quarter of this financial year. Moreover, it has rolled out a new campaign #LetsGetIndiaTicking, a movement urging individuals to kick-start the wheel of the economy post lockdown. “The thought that struck us was – can we do something to encourage each and every individual to do their bit to get the economy out of its slumber,” Mitra explained. The campaign is being run on Titan Company’s offline and online channels.
Read Also: Perfetti Van Melle India’s Rajesh Ramakrishnan on the marketing strategy which brands need to follow in the time of Covid-19
Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook | consumer goods company, Titan Company Limited, plans to increase its digital ad spends by 50% for the watches and wearables division in FY 21. the company claimed to have spent about Rs 100 crore in advertising on watches in FY 20. sales have started to pick up since June and July with the company recording an increase of 30%-40% across channels. the company has rolled out a new campaign #LetsGetIndiaTicking, a movement urging individuals to kick-start the wheel of the economy post- | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/want-to-be-a-crorepati-without-much-risk-create-this-portfolio-of-mutual-funds-in-fy19-2538027.html | Indian markets surge to fresh record highs in the financial year 2018 before losing a bit of momentum. The index rose over 11 percent while many stocks gave multibagger returns.
But, stock picking could become a tiresome as well as a difficult process if you are not well versed in reading balance sheets or have no idea what about the dynamics of the equity markets.
Considering the fact that equity asset class is likely to deliver maximum returns when compared to other asset classes, ignoring it might not be the right idea.
Investors should use the opportunity of the dip and add mutual funds from across themes to make a stable portfolio which can help in wealth creation.
If you are in the age bracket of 35-40 years and construct a portfolio which does not carry as much risk as direct equities then right fund selections across various categories should be able to do the job for you, suggest experts.
“If the investor has long-term financial goals and no idea about how to invest in equities, equity mutual fund can be one of the best vehicles to achieve the goal. Unless you are an expert or are willing to spend considerable effort in becoming one, it doesn’t make sense to invest yourself— Equity funds are the right choice,” Radhika Gupta, CEO, Edelweiss Mutual Fund told Moneycontrol.
Looking at the current scenario, wherein investor is in the age bracket of 35-40 years, here’s how you can plan your portfolio:
Asset allocation is very crucial for making a stable portfolio. The allocation changes with time as and when the need of investors change. As long as the investor is in the age bracket of 30-50 years, investment in equities is the right bet.
It is very hard to time equity markets, but instead, investors could use mutual fund route where fund managers would be able to make the right choice for you – what to buy and when to buy?
“One cannot change one’s asset allocation year on year. For a young person with limited short term liabilities, at least 60% of the money should be invested in Equities at all times. There is no point in timing the Equity markets as it just wouldn’t matter in the long term,” Raghvendra Nath, Managing Director, Ladderup Wealth Management told Moneycontrol.
“In the long term, the wealth creation would depend on the quality of stocks chosen and the underlying profit growth of those stocks. The stock prices and valuations both align to the Earning growth in the long term,” he said.
Don’t be scared to step into equity markets here’s what experts suggest investors do with their portfolio in FY19:
Jagannadham Thunuguntla, Sr. VP and Head of Research (Wealth), Centrum Broking Limited
We recommend investors to allocate 50-60 percent of capital in largecaps, 20-40 percent in mid & small caps and 10-20 percent in thematic stocks.
Prasanna Pathak, Fund Manager, Taurus Mutual Fund:
Of the incremental savings, 30-40 percent should go towards safety to a combination of Bank FD, Liquid and Arbitrage schemes of Mutual Funds. 20-30 percent should go towards moderate safety with better return potential to a combination of options like Income schemes, Balanced schemes, and Gold.
Remaining portion should go to Equity schemes of Mutual Funds (diversified across the large cap, mid-cap, and small cap). The portfolio composition will change based on individual’s risk appetite, income levels, commitments and liabilities etc. One must visit a certified financial advisor for specific allocation advise.
Dipan Mehta, Director, Elixir Equities Pvt. Ltd
Almost 30-35 percent of the portfolio should be allocated towards Banks/NBFCs (private sector and retail focussed), 30-35 percent into consumer-oriented stocks (Auto, Retail, Aviation, Entertainment, Building material, and appliances), 15 percent in Capital Goods / EPC companies 5 percent in niche exporter / special situation.Hold Cash at 10 percent at all times to take advantage of extreme volatility which will be the highlight of the next 12-15 months. | equity asset class is likely to deliver maximum returns when compared to other asset classes. investors should use the dip and add mutual funds from across themes to make a stable portfolio which can help in wealth creation. if you are in the age bracket of 35-40 years and construct a portfolio which does not carry as much risk as direct equities then equity mutual fund can be one of the best vehicles to achieve the goal. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/reopening-india/ | The economy is opening again after a painful pause necessitated by the coronavirus lockdown. Customers were in hiding, demand dropped to a trickle, supply chains were broken and consequently businesses took a pounding they will not forget. How will businesses open up? How soon can they hit the recovery path? Moneycontrol journalists will track all the action in companies big and small in sectors as diverse as hospitality and retail as they hit the restart button through stories, data, photos, podcasts and videos. You can catch them all here in one place. | the economy is opening again after a painful pause necessitated by the coronavirus lockdown. moneycontrol journalists will track all the action in businesses big and small as they hit the restart button. you can catch them all here in one place. a new series of stories will be released on thursday. back to mail online home. back to the page you came from. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/fm-nirmala-sitharman-press-conference-focus-shifts-to-bharat-in-second-tranche-of-measures-to-fight-covid-19-5266821.html | After announcing the first tranche of measures under the Atmanirbhar initiative, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on May 14 unveiled the next set of measures to alleviate the hardships caused to the farmers, migrant workers and street vendors due to the coronavirus-induced lockdown restrictions.
Street vendors, the worst-hit by lockdown and staring at an uncertain future, have been handed a major lifeline with the government announcing special credit facility of Rs 5,000 crore for them.
With the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana already in place, Sitharaman announced more measures as the government tries to put the economy back on track.
The '1 nation 1 ration card' is also expected to mitigate the problems of the poor and migrant workers to a great extent.
"We are conscious of the problems of the migrants. Government has been working for their benefit over the last two months. There may have been a lockdown, but the government has not been sitting idle," Sitharaman said at the outset, setting the tone for the press meet which lasted for over an hour.
COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show
Here we take a look at the key measures announced in today's press meet:
Tackling agri concerns
Sitharaman said a special drive to provide concessional credit to PM-Kisan beneficiaries will be undertaken. The Rs 2 lakh crore concessional credit will be extended to 2.5 crore farmers who don't have the card. Fisherman and animal husbandry workers will also be included.
Track this blog for highlights from second day of FM's briefings
Interest subvention scheme on farmer loans at concessional rates has also been extended until May 31, 2020.
"Liquidity support for farmers and rural economy has been happening over the past two months. Refinancing of Rs 29,000 crore was provided by NABARD to co-operative banks and RRB in March. Through RIDF, NABARD extended support of Rs 4,200 crore in March. Activities via banks to support the agriculture sector has not stopped during lockdown," she said.
Addressing woes of migrant workers
Sitharaman acknowledged that the migrant workers are undergoing immense pain due to the lockdown restructions and reiterated the government's claim of helping them get over this crisis.
"They will get free food grains for the next two months. This will benefit 8 crore migrants and central government has earmarked Rs 3,500 crore for this. For non-ration card holders, there will be free 5 kgs per family of wheat/rice and 1 kg chana. State governments will be in charge of this initiative," she said.
She added that in the past two months, government has transferred Rs 11,000 crore via SDRF to states for migrants and government has funded 3 meals/day to inmates of shelters for urban homeless and Centre has participated in forming 7,200 new self-help groups for urban poor since March 15.
"Will allocate more for MNREGA if required. MNREGA is offering work to 2.33 crore wage-seekers in 1.87 lakh gram panchayats. Actual annual expenditure under MNREGA this financial year so far is Rs 10,000 crore," she said.
Labour reforms
"We want to bring in universal minimum wage, and bring in a national floor wage for minimum wages, so that there is no disparity between states," she said.
She also said there is a proposal to make all occupations open to women, including night shifts with proper safeguards, in the pipeline in the proposed Labour Code.
Among other things, there will be mandatory ESIC coverage for employees of hazardous industries, social security schemes for gig and platform workers and re-skilling of retrenched workers. Focus will also be on employment for adivasis and tribals
Urban poor
She said the government will launch a rental housing scheme and use empty government land to build more housing
Street vendors
A special credit facility of Rs 5,000 crore for 50 lakh vendors was announced by the FM and she informed that it will be launched within a month
The initial working capital will be up to Rs 10,000.
Affordable Housing
The credit link subsidy scheme has been extended up to March, 2021. For the lowest strata of middle-income groups (income of up to 6-18 lakh/annum)
This will reinvigorate construction services and spur demand for building materials.
The FM said empty government land will be used to build more housing through PPP mode.
Reiterating the importance of small-scale units for the Indian economy, she said interest subvention support of 2 percent has been extended to all shishu loan holders (loans up to Rs 50,000)
Sitharaman in the first tranche had unveiled a Rs 5.94 lakh crore plan comprising off-budget items such as Rs 3 lakh crore of credit line to small businesses as well as liquidity support to shadow banks and power discoms.
Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak here | farmers, migrant workers and street vendors face severe hardships due to lockdown. finance minister announces new measures to ease the hardships. '1 nation 1 ration card' is expected to mitigate the problems of the poor and migrant workers. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. a vaccine helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/property-/-cstruction/rs-2700-crore-deal-indiabulls-to-exit-realty-biz-with-sale-of-sameer-gehlauts-stake/articleshow/69683994.cms | Others
MUMBAI: The Indiabulls Group is set to exit the real estate business with the sale of cofounder and chairman Sameer Gehlaut ’s 39.5% stake for Rs 2,700 crore to US-based private equity firm Blackstone and its local partner Embassy Group , said two persons with direct knowledge of the development. Indiabulls will turn its focus fully to financial services as it seeks to merge with Lakshmi Vilas Bank The transaction puts an enterprise valuation of Rs 7,000 crore on Indiabulls Real Estate’s portfolio — 23.5 million sq ft of residential projects and 2.4 million sq ft of commercial space under construction.Blackstone already owns 50% of Indiabulls’ commercial portfolio, including two marquee properties in Mumbai’s Lower Parel and Prabhadevi apart from one project in Gurgaon. Blackstone has also acquired the Chennai commercial property developed by Indiabulls Real Estate in its entirety. These include ready and leased properties. “The deal terms have been finalised and the parties are set to execute the same starting tomorrow (Friday),” said one of the persons mentioned above.“The entire transaction will be concluded in three legs, including an open offer as the final phase, and will be done by the end of this year,” the person said.As part of the transaction, Blackstone-Embassy will be acquiring Gehlaut’s 15% stake in Indiabulls Real Estate through an open-market deal on Friday. The remaining stake of about 24% will be acquired in six-eight weeks from now, triggering an open offer.Following this, the Indiabulls Group, which derives over 10% of its revenues from real estate, will focus on financial services.Blackstone, Embassy and Indiabulls Real Estate declined to comment.Gehlaut had told ET in April that he was willing to give up the real estate business for financial services in the context of the group’s proposed acquisition of Lakshmi Vilas Bank. Indiabulls Housing Finance (IHF) and its subsidiary Indiabulls Commercial Credit Ltd (ICC) are proposed be merged into Lakshmi Vilas Bank after a change in the merger agreement announced on the stock exchanges last month.Blackstone and Embassy are planning to keep the realty developer listed as the alliance’s residential platform. This is the first time Blackstone is acquiring a listed real estate company in India.In April, their joint venture Embassy Office Parks listed India’s maiden real estate investment trust (REIT). This has 33 million sq ft of office and hospitality assets, comprising seven business parks and four city-centric buildings in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune and Noida. The REIT raised Rs 4,750 crore through the issue that was subscribed 2.58 times.Embassy Office Parks REIT, the listed entity, will hold the right of first refusal on Indiabulls Real Estate’s under-construction commercial portfolio once ready and leased. However, the decision will be taken independently by its board, said the people.Apart from Blackstone, Macquarie and Brookfield Asset Management are also said to have shown interest in acquiring the company. Of these, Macquarie’s proposal involved delisting the company after conclusion of the transaction.Speaking to ET earlier this year, Blackstone Group president Jonathan Gray had underscored the fund’s continued interest in India.“Blackstone’s real estate investments in India have been performing extraordinarily for us and on a global basis, which is one of the reasons why we’re saying publicly that we want to do more here,” Gray had told ET.It has emerged as the most aggressive institutional investor in India’s real estate sector and owns the biggest portfolio of income-producing office assets in the country. It has committed $5.3 billion in the key markets of Mumbai, Noida, Pune, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad.The US-based multinational private equity, alternative asset management and financial services firm has invested across more than 50 companies in India. It has deployed more capital in India than in any other emerging market, with nearly $10.6 billion invested in private equity and real estate sector. | cofounder and chairman Sameer Gehlaut's 39.5% stake in indiabulls real estate to be sold to blackstone and its local partner Embassy. transaction puts an enterprise valuation of Rs 7,000 crore on indiabulls’ commercial portfolio. blackstone already owns 50% of Indiabulls’ commercial portfolio, including two marquee properties in Mumbai’s Lower Parel and Prabhadevi apart from one project in Gurgaon. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world/jacinda-ardern-dances-for-joy-after-new-zealand-eliminates-coronavirus-5375891.html | New Zealand lifted all social and economic restrictions except border controls after declaring on Monday it was free of the coronavirus, one of the first countries in the world to return to pre-pandemic normality.
Public and private events, the retail and hospitality industries and all public transport were allowed to resume without the distancing rules still in place across much of the world.
"While the job is not done, there is no denying this is a milestone ... Thank you, New Zealand," Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern told a news conference, saying she had danced for joy at the news.
"We are confident we have eliminated transmission of the virus in New Zealand for now, but elimination is not a point in time, it is a sustained effort."
New Zealand's 5 million people are emerging from the pandemic while big economies such as Brazil, Britain, India and the United States continue to grapple with spread of the virus.
COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show
Its 75 days of restrictions included about seven weeks of a strict lockdown in which most businesses were shut and everyone except essential workers had to stay home.
"Today, 75 days later, we are ready," Ardern said, announcing that social distancing restrictions would end at midnight.
Ardern said she had done a "little dance" when she was told there were no more active COVID-19 cases in New Zealand, surprising her two-year-old daughter, Neve.
"She was caught a little by surprise and she joined it having absolutely no idea why I was dancing around the lounge."
New Zealand has reported 1,154 infections and 22 deaths from COVID-19 since the virus arrived in late February.
Ardern had vowed to eliminate, not merely contain, the virus, which meant stopping transmission for two weeks after the last known case was cleared. For now, everyone entering the country will continue to be tested and quarantined.
Ardern was quickly trending on Twitter, and many said they wanted to move to New Zealand.
"Such news really brightens up your day! There is hope and this too shall pass for the entire world," one user tweeted.
Former prime minister Helen Clark tweeted: "Clear leadership and an engaged public have produced this result."
Ardern, 39, has won global praise for her leadership during the pandemic.
Her popularity at home has soared and recent surveys suggest she is well placed to win a second term in September's election.
Even so, the government will need to show it can revive the economy, which is expected to sink into recession.
Opposition parties have criticised Ardern's decision to maintain restrictions for so long.
Ardern did not commit to a timeline for a quarantine-free 'travel bubble' with Australia to facilitate tourism that the industries in both countries have been pushing for.
"We will need to move cautiously here. No one wants to jeopardize the gains New Zealand has made," she said.
Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here. | new Zealand is one of the first countries in the world to return to pre-pandemic normality. public and private events, retail and hospitality industries and all public transport resume. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. a vaccine helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/a-month-after-negative-oil-prices-us-crude-contract-expiry-looms-5279791.html | A month after sellers had to pay nearly $40 a barrel to get rid of U.S. oil futures, the next watershed moment looms with the expiry of the June contract on Tuesday - and so far there is little sign of a repeat of the historic plunge.
The extent of the damage that the coronavirus pandemic had inflicted on the oil industry came into focus on April 20, when the U.S. benchmark WTI contract plunged to minus $38 a barrel.
The virus destroyed so much fuel demand as billions of people stopped traveling that there was almost nowhere left to store the oil. So on the day before the May contract expired, investors stuck with barrels had to pay buyers to take it away.
A month later, governments around the world are slowly lifting travel restrictions and there are signs that demand is recovering from its nadir. Oil prices have staged something of a recovery, with U.S. crude rising on Monday to more than $30 a barrel and hitting its highest level since March 16.
As oil producers worldwide cut output rapidly, the pressure on storage is easing: U.S. government data this week showed crude inventories fell.
"There's clearly a different feel to the oil market heading into this contract expiry, with production cuts having been enforced globally, either through deals or unilaterally," said Craig Erlam, senior market analyst at OANDA.
"But will it be enough to avert another panic selling moment? The odds have certainly reduced ... there's a fine line between confidence and complacency and we can only hope that line hasn't been crossed or early next week it could quickly unravel."
The positive mood was reinforced as U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell issued an optimistic outlook for economic recovery later this year.
"Assuming there is not a second wave of the coronavirus, I think you will see the economy recover steadily through the second half of this year," Powell said Sunday night in broadcast remarks.
Still, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the federal agency that oversees futures and options trading, issued a rare warning on Wednesday to exchange operators and brokerages ahead of expiry, telling them they need to protect markets from manipulation and potentially intervene to protect customers.
Several brokerages or futures commission merchants (FCMs), including discount giant TD Ameritrade Corp, have restricted customers from buying new positions in some crude contracts since the price crash.
The Chicago Mercantile Exchange, which hosts the trade in WTI futures, last week raised maintenance margins for the June contract by 20%. That would make it too expensive for some smaller retail investors to hold many open positions ahead of expiry.
Asked about CME's expectations, a spokesperson said the exchange would not speculate on whether prices will be negative for any product and referred Reuters to notices about its systems' ability to accommodate negative pricing.
Last month, the CME ordered the United States Oil Fund LP , the largest oil-focused exchange-traded product in the country, to limit its position in the June contract to no more than 10,000 lots. The fund has issued filings to tell investors it has gone further than that - and has spread holdings through contracts expiring in July, August and September.
Open interest in June is already dwindling as a result of those moves, standing at about 75,000 lots on Thursday, Refinitiv Eikon data showed. That was down from nearly 135,000 lots on Wednesday.
On April 17, two days before the May contract expired, open interest stood at about 108,600 lots.
Graphic: Investors shift oil trades after -$40 disaster https://fingfx.thomsonreuters.com/gfx/ce/jznpnegdjvl/Oil%20trades%20shift.PNG
PLUNGE AFTERMATH
The WTI contract is physically settled, meaning the holder at expiry must take delivery of the oil in Cushing, Oklahoma. Retail investors keen to take a punt on oil prices through futures contracts have no interest in actually owning barrels of real crude.
Last month, retail investors got caught holding contracts close to expiry when buyers were scarce and storage at Cushing was effectively full, sending them into a frenzy to sell."Bluntly, small retail traders had no business being in the May contract at that time," said Henry Lichtenstein and Brett Friedman at risk management advisors Winhall Risk Analytics. Those traders' FCMs, the exchange or the CFTC should have stepped in and prohibited them from trading, they said.
"This would have avoided a financial effect on futures traders due to the allowance of negative prices that we conservatively estimate in the $3.8 billion range."
The mess last month threatened the contract's status as one of the two top global oil price gauges, according to Patricia Hemsworth, senior vice president of energy risk management at PGM Commodity Services.
"I believe the debacle of the May delivery threatened a benchmark which has provided the industry with an invaluable price discovery and risk transfer tool for 37 years," she said.
Among those impacted were investors in derivatives contracts based on the WTI that are traded on exchanges as far afield as China and Russia.
Bank of China (BoC) said it had hired lawyers to write to the CME urging it to investigate reasons behind abnormal fluctuations on April 21. Retail investors may have lost more than 9 billion yuan ($1.3 billion) from BoC's crude oil product, financial news outlet Caixin reported last month, citing unnamed sources.
Another factor that could help avoid a repeat of the crunch this month is that inventories at Cushing have begun to decline, falling by 3 million barrels last week, U.S. Energy Information Administration data showed. That should free up some space for those taking delivery of the June contract.
In physical markets, the forum for buying and selling actual oil rather than futures contracts, activity slowed down ahead of expiry. Physical deals are usually priced based on the benchmark and traders are keen to avoid exposure to any volatility ahead of expiry.
"Producers are hesitant to sell for June," one trading source at a U.S. producer said.
"I'm done for June at the moment." | oil futures contract expires on thursday. u.s. crude rises to more than $30 a barrel. u.s. fdr chairman jerome p. o'connell optimistic about economic recovery. u.s. futures agency issues rare warning to exchange operators ahead of expiry. u.s. crude is at its highest level since march 16. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/coronavirus-lockdown-will-stay-in-hotspots-follow-do-gaz-doori-pm-modi-10-key-takeaways/story/402122.html | Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a video meeting with state Chief Ministers, on Monday said that the nationwide coronavirus lockdown has yielded positive results. He indicated that the lockdown may continue in the parts of the country worst affected by the infection. He reiterated that that social distancing is the most effective way of fighting against COVID-19 and by complying with the mantra of 'do gaz doori', people can protect themselves.
"The lockdown has yielded positive results as the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past one and a half months," he said. This was the fourth such interaction of the Prime Minister with the CMs, the earlier ones had been held on 20 March, 2 April and 11 April, 2020.
Highlighting the importance to enforce guidelines strictly in the hotspots, especially in the red zone areas, PM Modi said that the efforts of the states should be directed towards converting the red zones into orange and thereafter to green zones.
Also Read: Coronavirus India Live Updates: Follow 'Do Gaz Doori' motto; lockdown to stay in red zones, says PM Modi
Here are the 10 takeaways from the crucial meeting of the PM Modi with the Chief Ministers:
Prime Minister underlined that the lockdown has yielded positive results as the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past one and a half months. Comparing with other countries whose situation was almost similar at the start of March, he said that India has been able to protect many people due to timely measures. He, however, forewarned that the danger of the virus is far from over and constant vigilance is of paramount importance. He indicated that lockdown may continue in parts of the country worst affected by the coronavirus infection and asked the CMs to prepare state-wise exit policy in view of their red, orange and green zone. On the state of economy, he said that it is relatively good and one should not worry about it. "We have to give importance to the economy as well as continue the fight against COVID -19," he said, adding that emphasis should be given on the usage of technology to utilise time to embrace reform measures. He also emphasised on the significance of ensuring that more people download the 'Aarogya Setu' app to bolster the efforts of the country in the battle against COVID-19. "We have to be brave and bring in reforms that touch the lives of common citizens." The PM also suggested that people associated with universities can be integrated on devising ways to fight the pandemic and strengthen research as well as innovation. On the issue of bringing back Indians who are overseas, he said that this has to be done keeping in mind the fact that they don't face inconvenience and their families are not under any risk. Prime Minister also urged Chief Ministers to factor in the changes in weather - advent of summer and monsoon - and the illnesses that can potentially come in this season, while strategising ahead. The Chief Ministers praised the leadership of the Prime Minister during this period of crisis, and also highlighted the efforts undertaken by them in containing the virus. Four of nine Chief Ministers at the meeting advocated for the extension of lockdown, while five said that it should end. They spoke about the need to keep a close vigil on international borders, and also on addressing the economic challenge and ways to further boost health infrastructure. The Union Home Minister Amit Shah reaffirmed the need to enforce lockdown so that maximum lives are saved.
By Chitranjan Kumar
Also Read: Coronavirus crisis: Congress slams govt for allowing 'hoarding', profiteering on rapid test kits sold to ICMR | prime minister Narendra Modi says coronavirus lockdown has yielded positive results. he says the country has managed to save thousands of lives in the past month. he urges state chief ministers to prepare state-wise exit policy. he also urges the government to take steps to curb the spread of the virus. he also urges the government to take steps to curb the spread of the virus. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/market/commodities/lpg-use-to-surge-from-record-as-government-promotes-cleaner-fuel/1566650/ | India’s demand for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) rose to a record in the fiscal year ended in March amid government measures to provide cleaner cooking fuel to rural households, and analysts expect consumption to keep rising.
About two-thirds of India’s population live in rural areas, typically using firewood, coal or dried dung cakes for cooking.
India consumed a record 24.9 million tonnes of LPG in the financial year 2018/19, 53 percent higher than five years ago, and 6.9 percent higher than the previous year.
The boost follows a social welfare programme, known as the Ujjwala scheme, launched by the government in 2016 that has provided about 72 million new LPG connections to households in 714 districts, according to official data.
“Supported by government policies, mainly through the ‘Ujjwala Scheme’ and a rising middle class population, LPG penetration in Indian rural areas has been extremely robust,” Sri Paravaikkarasu, director for Asia oil at energy consultancy FGE, said in an email.
Amid the Ujjwala programme, close to 80 percent of Indian households have access to LPG as of the end of 2018, up from 56 percent in 2016, according to FGE.
“Favourable government policies will support LPG demand to increase strongly in coming years,” said Paravaikkarasu, adding her consulting firm expects LPG demand grow by 8 percent in 2019 and 6.7 percent in 2020.
Growing LPG consumption has kindled a surge in India’s imports of the fuel, and analysts expect this trend to intensify.
India imported 13.2 million tonnes of LPG in the year to March 2019, a record high and more than double the import volumes in the 2013/14 financial year. Imports were 15.9 percent higher than the previous year.
“The phenomenal growth in LPG usage will reduce India’s self-sufficiency of LPG to 42 percent in 2025 from about 70 percent in 2013,” said Aman Verma, a research analyst at Wood Mackenzie.
“An additional 5 million tonnes per annum of import terminal capacity is being built and supposed to be completed by FY 2020-21 in order to meet the demand,” Verma added.
Indian consumers have used the LPG to erode kerosene’s role as a cooking fuel in the country.
India’s kerosene sales plunged 10 percent during 2018/19 to 3.5 million tonnes, less than half of the 7.2 million tonnes sold in 2013/14.
Kerosene is sold in India via public distribution shops operated by the government at subsidized rates.
“While we expect the downtrend to continue, kerosene demand should not fall off the cliff hereafter, as it should stabilize at 50,000-60,000 barrels per day baseload levels,” FGE’s Paravaikkarasu said. That is equal to between 2.3 million to 2.8 million tonnes per year, according to Reuters calculations. | india consumed a record 24.9 million tonnes of liquefied petroleum gas in the financial year 2018/19. the boost follows a social welfare programme, known as the 'ujjwala scheme' launched by the government in 2016. close to 80 percent of Indian households have access to LPG as of the end of 2018, up from 56 percent in 2016. growing LPG consumption has kindled a surge in India’s imports of the fuel, and analysts expect this trend to intensify. | Positive |
https://www.livemint.com/Auto/Yx0brfpW4eydSbe8j5DXMJ/The-6-trillion-barrier-holding-electric-cars-back.html | Wouldn’t it be great if we could all drive without dirtying the air we breathe? Alas, not everyone can afford an electric car.
The good news is the death of the internal combustion engine is nearing and electric-vehicle sales are on a tear. Countries that together account for more than 10% of global auto sales have detailed plans to phase out conventional gasoline-powered cars. Include China, and that jumps to 40%.
These days, electric cars can drive further and be charged faster than previously. Automakers are beginning to churn out at least one electric variant, with more than 100 battery-powered models to be available by next year. Does that mean the affordable electric car of the future has arrived?
Sales numbers suggest it’s getting closer: consumers bought more than 1 million electric vehicles last year, an increase of almost 60% from 2016, even as global car demand turned lower. China, with an aggressive green vehicle policy, accounts for almost half of worldwide electric car sales. The average price of lithium-ion batteries, which account for almost half a car’s cost, has dropped from $599 per kilowatt-hour to $208 per kWh over the past five years. Drivers now have almost 600,000 charging outlets globally, of which more than half are in China.
The country is responsible for a big part of the shift in demand, through carrot-and-stick policies. That’s forced global automakers looking for a foothold in the world’s largest auto market to start producing electric cars.
In absolute numbers, conventional vehicles dwarf their green cousins. However, the decline of gas-guzzling engines looks inexorable as stringent fuel economy standards force manufacturers to rethink the future and look to China. Electric vehicle sales rose 55% in the country last month, even as overall passenger-car demand slumped.
Elon Musk’s Tesla Inc. has big plans for China, along with a host of homegrown electric car companies that have sprung up with backing from deep-pocketed investors.
China’s incentives, policies and industry rules essentially require a portion of all cars sold to be electric. With less than a third of the parts of regular autos, electric models are easier to manufacture. Surely, then, we’ll get there?
The trouble is, the sales numbers don’t say much about quality or technology. Earlier this year, analysts from UBS Group AG went to scope out electric car batteries around Asia-Pacific. The reality on the ground wasn’t as good as the figures suggested. China’s domestic batteries performed poorly at low temperatures and companies had other manufacturing issues, the analysts noted after speaking to unidentified industry participants. Others said the sales numbers were mostly a marketing effort reflecting pressure from local governments eager to show they’re following Beijing’s policies.
Meanwhile, in August, General Motors Co. postponed the introduction of the Buick Velite 7, a local version of its Volt model, because of deficient batteries. The launch had been scheduled for September, with a pure-electric version planned for next year. The supplier is a Michigan-based, Chinese-owned company with a plant in Hangzhou.
Either way, the problem of cost and, therefore, consumer take-up looms large. Households most likely to buy a battery-powered electric car have an income of $300,000 a year or more, according to a UBS survey of around 10,000 people in the six largest auto markets. Only 41% of households with income of $150,000 to around $200,000 plan to make such a vehicle their next auto purchase. The biggest barrier to buying cleaner cars is still the high price.
The cost of full adoption is astronomical. An estimated $6 trillion is theoretically needed to build the infrastructure that electric cars need such as charging stations and power networks, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. That’s about 7.5% to 8% of the world’s gross domestic product. Add to that the amount companies spend on making the cars and batteries, and the number could be even higher.
Studies have shown that the transition costs will have to be reduced through government subsidies and support. Withdrawing support too early—as the case of Tesla has shown in Denmark and Hong Kong — kills sales immediately.
For companies, finding the balance between affordability and profitability remains tough. Take China’s battery champion Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd., which went public in Shenzhen about six months ago. It counts the likes of BMW AG among its customers and has almost 40% of the battery market in China. Margins fell 5 percentage points in the third quarter, though volumes and profit rose. A decline in average selling prices and higher raw materials costs were to blame.
Even as technology improves, costs remain the biggest barrier. Luxury carmakers such as Jaguar Land Rover and Porsche Automobil Holding SE will reap better margins from higher-priced electric SUVs. But for such models to become widely affordable, the cost of a battery would have to come down to $100 per kWh.
The capital spending needed to make that happen won’t be easy. Expenses are the biggest issue for the auto industry, from tariffs and raw materials to labor and research and development. Cost of goods sold averages more than 80% of net sales at the world’s largest car companies.
The bottom line that is we’re at least five years away from bringing the price of a good electric car down to that of comparable conventional one, without factoring in tax credits and subsidies. Drivers will have to hold their breath for a while longer.
Anjani Trivedi is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering industrial companies in Asia. She previously worked for the Wall Street Journal.
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Topics | electric-vehicle sales are on a tear in countries that account for 10% of global auto sales. china is the only country that has plans to phase out conventional gasoline-powered cars. the average price of lithium-ion batteries has dropped from $599 per kilowatt-hour to $208 per kWh over the past five years. electric vehicle sales rose 55% in the country last month, even as overall passenger-car demand slumped. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/foreign-trade/us-industry-body-to-open-bihar-chapter-to-facilitate-investments/articleshow/67190944.cms | In a first of its kind, a top American industry advocacy group will open its Bihar chapter to become partners in the development and facilitation of investments in the state.The US India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF), whose membership comprises of Fortune 500 companies, announced its decision following a industry roundtable with the visiting Bihar's Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi Modi, along with a high powered state delegation comprising Health Minister Mangal Pandey and other senior officials, is currently on a visit to the US as part of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's funded Bihar Technical Support Program.Hosted by the USISPF, the roundtable on Wednesday was attended by representatives from some of the top American companies like Amazon, FMC and Qualcomm , whose officials expressed their keen interest in becoming a partner in Bihar's developmental journey.The business leaders were apprised of the double-digit growth Bihar has achieved over the last decade and the vast investment opportunity it offers in sectors like agri-technology, food processing, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, energy and skill development among others.Encouraged by the interest of US industries in the state, Gaurav Verma, chief operating officer of USISPF, announced to open a Bihar Chapter under the Strategic Partnership Forum to enable development of partnerships and facilitation of investments in an organised manner."The first of its kind initiative by this American industry advocacy group is aimed at establishing a 'true partnership' between Bihar, which is the fastest growing Indian State and the business and industry leaders in the United States, which is the world's largest economy," Verma said.During the roundtable several business leaders showed interest to invest in Bihar considering wide opportunities.Shawn Whitman from Agri-chem firm FMC (Food Machinery Corporation) expressed interest in exploring investment opportunities in agriculture technology and making Bihar their base for Eastern India, a media release said.Similarly, Ron Somers representing the pharmaceutical innovator Gilead Sciences expressed interest in volunteer licensing to enable availability of top-line drugs for treating illnesses like Hepatitis, HIV and Kala-azar at low and affordable prices.Other business groups expressed interest to invest in the arenas of technology, higher education among others.David Roth from Amazon explained how organised retail is growing in Bihar and hoped to create more jobs by setting up logistics and distribution chains in the state.The delegation from Bihar also had a meeting with World Bank officials in Washington DC, seeking help to address its major socio-economic challenges, in addition to improving its infrastructure. | the US India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF) will open its Bihar chapter. the group is aimed at establishing a 'true partnership' between the state and the business leaders in the united states. the group is currently on a visit to the us as part of the bill & melinda gates foundation's funded Bihar Technical Support Program. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/education-2/empowering-students-to-speak-the-truth-says-jamia-vice-chancellor-najma-akhtar/1998861/ | The MHRD’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) ranks universities and colleges based on five parameters—teaching, research, graduation outcomes, outreach and perception. This year, Jamia Millia Islamia was ranked tenth. If it wasn’t for a poor score in ‘perception’, the university could have fared better—in fact, in ‘teaching’, ‘graduation outcomes’ and ‘outreach’, it was in the top-five. Najma Akhtar, vice-chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia—and the first woman to hold the post—says that the university is working towards excellence and one of the ways it is getting reflected is good rankings. In an interview with FE’s Vikram Chaudhary, she adds that be it a JNU or a Jamia, if students perceive that something is wrong, they go out and speak up. Excerpts:
Jamia Millia Islamia not only broke into the top-10 in NIRF rankings, but also improved its position in the global THE and QS rankings. Was it due to a conscious effort?
Our focus is to keep working towards overall improvement, and that has now started reflecting. Ranking parameters give us some direction where all to improve; we are working towards excellence and one of the ways it is getting reflected is good rankings.
What is your plan for restarting physical classrooms?
Unless it’s proven safe, I don’t think we will be opening physical classrooms. Online education delivery is anyway going on.
When the lockdown started, we realised we were not fully prepared (in teaching online); I believe that was the case across all universities in India. So the first thing I did was organising training for the faculty on how to teach online. I think we were the first university in the country to train its own faculty members on online teaching; it’s a free training and we have now opened it for faculty from other universities as well.
How many placements/job offers have been impacted due to Covid-19?
Industry is being invited on webinars and interviews are happening online, but I have told my students that this year placements are going to be very tough (aapko bahut mehnat karni padegi placements ke liye, jobs ke liye). We don’t have the exact number of students who have lost job offers, because not all students have told us the same, but we have been telling the employees to continue with placement activities. I have an apprehension that the salaries on offer this year may not be as good (as they would have been in normal economy times).
What sort of research is happening at Jamia Millia Islamia on Covid-19 or pandemics in general?
We were told (by the minister) that he will support research. Social sciences research is going on—we have five adopted villages and are finding out how they are coping up with the pandemic—but engineering and medical research requires money; you need well-equipped labs. We have sent the minister some 25 proposals and are waiting for funding; even though we haven’t received it, we have asked our researchers to start.
Were any students locked up inside the campus?
There were about 600 students who were inside the campus when the lockdown started. Around Eid when road and train travel was opened, we send them to their homes; we could not place them in normal public buses, so we tested them, and when all were found coronavirus-negative, we hired buses and sent them home. They were from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand and Kashmir. Right now we don’t have any student living on the campus, but for 100-odd students who are preparing for UPSC civil services and who have cleared the preliminary exam.
Does the university have a role in educating the larger public on matters that are pertinent to shaping a more egalitarian, more tolerant society?
This university is located inside an area that is not so economically well-off. It was started with an intention of nation-building and working for the community; Mahatma Gandhi was very active here. A lot of our activities happen with the community; our students keep travelling to adopted villages, they stay there, and work for the community. We are focusing a lot on girl child education. While we are not IGNOU, we have one of the biggest distance education outreach.
What role do educators and university administration have in inculcating a sense of ‘speaking truth to power’ amongst students?
We obviously don’t have a separate department that empowers students to speak the truth. I think our teaching in general empowers them. Be it a JNU or a Jamia, if students perceive that something is wrong, they go out and speak up. The dharna-kind of protest is new to Jamia, but nothing has ever happened inside the campus. Protests happen at every university—for backward castes, for fees, etc.
How is Jamia Millia Islamia celebrating 100 years of existence?
Universities get funding so that they can celebrate or create some infrastructure celebrating the event. The money is usually Rs 100 crore. We asked for a lesser amount earlier this year, but still haven’t received it. I know these are tough times and the number of universities has also increased so the funding has obviously reduced. I feel we should not be dependent on the government alone; we have to find other ways of earning money, like teachers doing consultancy, support from alumni, sharing our physical infrastructure, and so on. We are celebrating the centenary by holding webinars and other online activities.
Postscript: Najma Akhtar tells me that this is the first time a government-funded minority university has entered the top-10 in any major rankings. It’s not an elite institution, its students don’t come from an elite background, and yet if it has been able to get into top-10, it speaks volumes about educational improvement happening at Jamia Millia Islamia. | the MHRD’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) ranks universities and colleges based on five parameters—teaching, research, graduation outcomes, outreach and perception. this year, Jamia Millia Islamia was ranked tenth in the NIRF rankings. vice-chancellor, Jamia Millia Islamia, says that the university is working towards excellence and one of the ways it is getting reflected is good rankings. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/uber-wins-1-billion-investment-from-toyota-softbank-fund-3856051.html | Japanese car giant Toyota and investment fund SoftBank Vision Fund on April 19 unveiled an investment of $1 billion in US company Uber to drive forward the development of driverless ridesharing services. The latest cash injection, expected to close in the third quarter this year, came amid fevered anticipation of Uber's public share offering which is expected to be the largest in the tech sector for years.
Toyota has already invested $500 million in Uber as the firm races Google-owned Waymo and a host of other companies, including major automakers, to develop self-driving vehicles.
The latest investment, which also involves Japanese parts maker DENSO, will go to Uber's Advanced Technologies Group in a bid to "accelerate the development and commercialisation of automated ridesharing," the firms said in a statement.
Toyota and DENSO are stumping up USD 667 million and SoftBank Vision Fund, the investment arm of Japanese tycoon Masayoshi Son's SoftBank, will pour $333 million into the venture.
It is already the top shareholder in Uber, holding 16 percent.
The Japanese car firm said it would also contribute "an additional $300 million over the next three years to help cover the costs related to these activities."
Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said driverless cars would "transform transportation as we know it, making our streets safer and our cities more liveable."
His firm is aiming to go beyond car rides to becoming the "Amazon of transportation" in a future where people share, instead of own, vehicles.
If all goes to plan, commuters could ride an e-scooter to a transit station, take a train, then grab an e-bike, share a ride or take an e-scooter at the arriving station to complete a journey -- all using an Uber app on a smartphone.
Uber is also seeing growing success with an "Eats" service that lets drivers make money delivering meals ordered from restaurants.
Last week, Uber filed official documents for its much-anticipated public share offering.
The filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission said it operates on six continents with some 14 million trips per day and has totalled more than 10 billion rides since it was founded in 2010.
The filing contained a "placeholder" amount of $1 billion to be raised but that figure is expected to increase ahead of the initial public offering (IPO) expected in May.
The Wall Street Journal said earlier this month that Uber was seeking to raise $10 billion in what would be the largest stock offering of the year.
Media reports said the ride-hailing giant was likely to seek a market value of close to $100 billion.
Uber is the largest of the "unicorns" or venture-backed firms worth at least USD 1 billion to list on Wall Street, and is one of the key companies in the "sharing economy" based on offering services to replace ownership of cars, homes and other commodities.
Its revenue grew 42 percent last year to $11.2 billion but it continued to lose money from its operations. A net profit was reported for the year from a large asset sale, but operational losses were more than $3 billion.
And some analysts have voiced caution over the forthcoming IPO given a relative lacklustre debut for Lyft, the main US rival.
Khosrowshahi has promised greater transparency as he seeks to restore confidence in the global ridesharing leader hit by a wave of misconduct scandals.
In October, Toyota and SoftBank announced the creation of a joint venture to create "new mobility service" including driverless vehicles for services such as meal deliveries.
The new company -- called "Monet", short for "mobility network" -- is majority owned by SoftBank.
SoftBank started as a software firm but has increasingly been pushing into investments under tycoon Son, one of Japan's richest men. | Toyota and SoftBank invest $1 billion in ridesharing firm Uber. the cash injection is expected to close in the third quarter of this year. the firm is aiming to become the "Amazon of transportation" in a future where people share. it has totalled more than 10 billion rides since it was founded in 2010. a public offering is expected to be the largest in the tech sector for years. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/expert-view/govt-support-in-fy09-was-6-of-gdp-its-just-1-so-far-arindam-guha/articleshow/75064006.cms | Unlock Leadership Excellence with a Range of CXO Courses Offering College Course Website IIM Lucknow IIML Chief Marketing Officer Programme Visit IIM Lucknow IIML Chief Executive Officer Programme Visit Indian School of Business ISB Chief Digital Officer Visit
For most large economies including India, the response has been more or less similar. As you said very correctly, the Indian response is in line with the global response. Three broad components; one is of course focussing on the medical and healthcare sector because that is the frontline of the battle against Covid-19. So in terms of that particular sector, in addition to direct funding, we are seeing clear attempts to go for frugal innovation. We have seen a number of alcohol beverage manufacturers, for example, being nudged by the government to go into sanitising liquid manufacturing. We have seen start-ups being encouraged to come up with testing kits and the approval process is being cut down. So if it is essentially a story of mobilising everything to take on the pandemic and managing it efficiently.On the healthcare side, of course, there is a clear need to segregate facilities; which is what the government has been doing. I think we will see more private sector involvement in terms of standard frameworks for public private partnership through which healthcare facilities and doctor bandwidth in the private sector will get leveraged; not only in the major cities but even in the tier-II cities and the same thing would apply to testing facilities as well. So that is as far as the first pillar of the response is concerned.Definitely. The MSME sector has been a major focus for almost all countries and India is no exception. We have already seen measures like the government bearing both the employers and employees’ contribution to Employees’ Provident Fund for certain companies which employ less than 100 employees. We have seen those measures come into play. You see, much of India’s workforce is unorganised and that is where we have seen direct cash benefit transfers through existing schemes.But coming back to your question on MSMEs, in addition to social security benefits being there going forward, we do expect a number of other measures to come from the government. What we have seen in other countries are specific lines of credit being extended through banks and financial institutions with the target being MSMEs so that they get better working capital loan support and also postponement of their statutory payments, which India by the way has also announced in terms of postponement of certain taxes.So we definitely expect more along those lines. Another important fact about MSMEs is credit guarantees in addition to direct loans, which many countries have tweaked so that MSMEs can leverage enhanced guarantee facilities to borrow more.Yes, this is just the initial response. India has a challenge because there are about 40 crore unorganised sector workers and they are not in any one central database. They are in the unorganised sector. So it is very difficult to reach out to them. So what the government has done is the next best course which was available to them. They have gone by the existing schemes like the Jan Dhan accounts. Many of the beneficiaries of Jan Dhan accounts are actually unorganised sector workers.Even when we look at the disbursements which have been announced for farmers or the farming sector, agricultural labourers under the Kisan Samman scheme also cater to another segment of the unorganised sector. So the government is trying to reach out with direct cash transfer benefits using existing channels and ensuring that there is no leakage and ensuring that the money reaches the hands of the target beneficiaries. Now that is the immediate response,I think going forward, there could be other measures which may be required. For example, we have seen one of the measures being that the daily wage rate under the NREGA scheme has been announced but the NREGA scheme as of now does not really cover agriculture sector labourers. We can see that we are approaching harvest time and we will require significant agriculture sector labour to support the harvesting so that the food security does not adversely get impacted. Maybe it is time to look at measures like customising NREGA and other schemes so that relevant support can be extended to that sector as well.So I think it is a beginning. This is a dynamic scenario going forward. I am sure we will also get a lot of unorganised sector requirements around the e-delivery of essential items which is happening today because there is a clear strategy of discouraging people from going to grocery stores. Maybe in certain areas of the country, home delivery, leveraging electronic channels for order booking are going to stay for some time. So that also is an avenue of employment for the unorganised sector workforce. We need to just think of proper safety mechanisms which can be put in place so that without having a spread of the disease, you can also create employment options.Absolutely. This is a dynamic situation and you are very correct when you say that countries like the UK, for example, have announced measures which are roughly around 15% of their GDP. The US has gone in for a $2 trillion package, which is around 9% to 10% of their GDP. But I think the Government of India is following a very prudent approach. This is an evolving situation. This is just the initial set of measures. Going forward, I am sure we will see more interventions coming. If you recollect and look at the 2008-09 depression, the support which the government actually ended up extending was around 6% of GDP and as we stand today, we are at around 1% of GDP in terms of the measures which have been announced.But it is prudent not to go for everything in one go because India has some inherent advantages and opportunities as well. We have a very large market internally and while the global trade flows have been interrupted, this is also an opportunity for the country to replace some of those global sources with manufacturing in India. So I am sure that is a holistic strategy which the government is looking at; which is why it is prudent to take one step at a time. | the medical and healthcare sector is the frontline of the battle against covid-19. the government is focusing on sanitising liquid manufacturing. the government is also encouraging start-ups to come up with testing kits. the government is also focusing on a number of other measures to help MSMEs. the government is also introducing a number of new measures to help the sector. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/be-cautious-gold-may-fall-upto-1400ounce-before-bouncing-back-sharply-5055961.html | Sunil Kumar Katke
Gold has been the investors's choice considering the returns it has produced during the past 18 months, leading the chart with outstanding returns. This year, we saw the prices touch multi-year high above $1,700 per troy ounce mark. This was mainly supported by fundamentals like lower long term interest rates/yields, the United States-China trade conflicts, the US-Iran tensions and other factors that pushed demand for the yellow metal from investors. Individual investors, Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) and most importantly global central banks drove the prices from about $1,200 an ounce 18 months back to close to the $1,700 mark. This took gold prices to all time high in Indian markets to above Rs 45,000 mark for 10 grams.
However, the rally got curbed by the threat posed by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), which has spread worldwide bringing global trade to a halt. At first it was China, then Europe and then gradually it started impacting investor sentiment across the globe, resulting in sell-off in equity markets. Saudi Arabia entering into a price war with Russia on failing to convince the OPEC+ nations support on increasing the production cut also that led to the Crude price crash by more than 50 percent in a matter of days. Both these events built massive margin calls in other asset classes like gold leading to a sell-off bringing down the prices from recent $1,700 to $1,450 in no time at Comex and in Indian markets the prices tumbled from Rs 45,000 mark to close to Rs 38,200 mark within weeks.
On the other hand, lower crude oil prices can be a nightmare for exporting nations and is a blessing for importers like India, barring the negative impact on the local refineries that may post losses till the Saudi Arabia unrest is addressed, which will keep the yellow metal prices in check.
The efforts put in by governments across the globe on bailing out tumbling economies by the way of stimulus packages, and lowering interest rates by most of the central banks to tackle the medium term impact of corona virus, may bring back investor’s confidence on equity markets and the yellow metal at once, considering the pandemic is dealt with caution.
We expect gold prices to bounce back to the recent highs in the next two to three months, once things normalise and the panic among investors is at ease. However, the prices may test levels of $1,400 mark before seeing a recovery. We advise that one needs to be very cautious while buying, considering the unknown nature of medium to long term progress of virus infections and the way different countries are going to deal with it.
The author is Business Head – Commodity and Currency at Axis Securities.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. | sunil Kumar Katke gold has been the investors' choice considering the returns it has produced during the past 18 months. this year, we saw the prices touch multi-year high above $1,700 per troy ounce mark. this was mainly supported by lower long term interest rates/yields, the united states-china trade conflicts and the US-iran tensions. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/facebook-jio-deal-coronavirus-has-given-india-best-chance-to-attract-foreign-investors-says-usispf/story/401756.html | Facebook's USD 5.7 billion investment in Reliance Jio in the midst of coronavirus pandemic is a reflection of the faith that foreign companies have in Indian economy's potential and future growth, a top US-based India-centric business advocacy group has said.
In an interview to PTI, US India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF) president Mukesh Aghi said the COVID-19 crisis has offered India the best opportunity to attract foreign investment and replace China as the world's manufacturing hub.
"I strongly feel that once the COVID-19 crisis ends, India will have the best opportunity to attract hundreds of these (foreign) companies into the country," Aghi told PTI. It will not only create jobs but also bring in investments and keep the Indian economy's momentum going.
The multi-billion-dollar investment announced by Facebook in an Indian company in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic shows that India is still a very attractive market on the digital commerce side, he said.
"The partnership between Facebook and Jio is a win-win value proposition for not only for both companies but also for citizens and consumers in India. It also reflects the faith of foreign companies in the potential of India's economy and future growth," Aghi said.
It is important that "India builds confidence" among foreign companies by assuring them of providing a "level playing field" as well as "transparency and stability" in policy making, Aghi said.
According to Aghi, India has brought in reforms in its corporate tax structure but it must look at its labour laws and land reform as well. The momentum has to keep moving in the right direction to build the confidence of foreign investors, he asserted.
Because of the bitter experience that the US companies are having in China during this pandemic, wherein they cannot move their goods because of the many restrictions imposed by Beijing on them, the sentiment among these companies is: "We have to look beyond China and very fast," he said.
Observing that tensions between China and the rest of the world are going to rise in future due to the COVID-19 crisis, Aghi referred to the USD 2 billion package announced by Japan for its companies to move their manufacturing base away from China. "You will see more and more of that happening," he said.
The COVID-19 crisis has shown that India can take up the role of global economic leader as it is taking care of its citizens while also helping its friends and people across the globe, he said. "It has shown that in time of need, India as a friend can step up. So, from a global leadership perspective, I think the stature of India has gone up," Aghi said.
He further said that USISPF has estimated that for India to become a USD 5 trillion economy, it needs roughly USD 100 billion-dollar investment on an annual basis. At the moment, not only US companies but other companies too are looking for an alternative to China, he said. "And If India plays its cards right, a lot of that (companies) can move into India, he said.
Also read: Facebook buys 10% stake in Reliance Jio: Here's what Mark Zuckerberg, Mukesh Ambani have to say
Also read: Facebook-Jio deal: Inside Reliance's Rs 1.53 lakh crore debt resolution plan | facebook's USD 5.7 billion investment in Reliance Jio is a "win-win value proposition," he says. the investment is a reflection of the faith that foreign companies have in India's potential. the COVID-19 crisis has offered India the best opportunity to attract foreign investment. the group says the investment will not only create jobs but also bring in investments. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/infrastructure/railways/tirupati-station-redevelopment-indian-railways-to-provide-5-star-like-experience-with-premium-lounge-pics/1443064/ | Indian Railways is all set to give a 5-star hotel like experience to passengers! In the coming days, people travelling to Balaji Temple via train can rest at ‘ATITHI’, a premium lounge at the Tirupati railway station, which will be inaugurated soon. With the launch of this lounge, passengers especially devotees travelling to Balaji Temple, will be able to wait or rest comfortably. Also, they will be able to enjoy many other modern facilities. Recently, the Railway Minister Piyush Goyal through a tweet said that the Tirupati railway station, which falls under the South Central zone of Indian Railways, will undergo a major redevelopment soon.
Goyal in his tweet, stated that the futuristic plans for Tirupati railway station, which will serve as a benchmark for other railway stations across the country will include drop off facility, hotel block, security check, waiting area for passengers, food court, departure concourse, and newly developed platform. In addition to these features, railway station plaza, as well as a multiplex, has also been proposed.
Recently, Minister of State of Railways, Rajen Gohain in a written reply to a query asked in Rajya Sabha stated that the Modi government has approved the proposal of the national transporter for redevelopment of railway stations through simplified procedures and for longer lease tenure by IRSDC (Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited) as nodal agency. Therefore, all railways stations across the country have been entrusted to the corporation for undertaking the techno-economic feasibility studies. On the basis of the outcome of the feasibility studies, the railway stations are likely to be taken up for redevelopment, in phases, he informed.
The redevelopment of railway stations is being planned by the Railway Ministry by leveraging commercial development of land and air space in and around the station premises. With this initiative, the railway stations will also be provided with several state-of-the-art amenities for passengers. Also, according to a press release issued by the Cabinet a few months ago, the redevelopment of railway stations will have a multiplier effect in the economy with increased job creation as well as improved economic growth. | the 'ATITHI' lounge will be inaugurated soon at the Tirupati railway station. passengers will be able to rest at the lounge and enjoy other facilities. the redevelopment of railway stations will have a multiplier effect in the economy. the station will also be provided with several state-of-the-art amenities. the plans include drop off facility, hotel block, security check, waiting area for passengers, food court, departure concourse, and newly developed platform. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/fpis-remain-net-buyers-in-feb-invest-rs-24617-crore/articleshow/74157959.cms | New Delhi: Foreign investors remained net buyers in the first half of February by investing a net sum of Rs 24,617 crore in the Indian markets due to positive sentiments post-Budget and the central bank's decision to maintain an accommodative stance in its recent monetary policy review.As per the depositories' data, Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPI) pumped in a net sum of Rs 10,426 crore into equities and Rs 14,191 crore into the debt segment between February 3 and 14. This adds up to a total net investment of Rs 24,617 crore.FPIs have been net buyers in the Indian markets since September 2019, the data showed."The recovery in the markets post-Budget has largely been supported by DIIs (domestic institutional investors)," Ajit Mishra, vice-president (research) at Religare Broking Ltd, said.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget proposed to remove dividend distribution tax (DDT) on companies and, henceforth, the tax burden will be shifted to recipients at the applicable rate.Besides, she also said certain government securities will be open for foreign investors adding that the Centre plans to increase investment limit for FPIs in corporate bonds from 9 per cent to 15 per cent.However, the buying in equities has been nominal in February so far as "the subdued FPI sentiments are a result of coronavirus outbreak's impact on global economic growth," Mishra said.Citing reasons for investment in the bonds market, analysts said the investment was largely on the back of the RBI maintaining an accommodative stance in its recent monetary policy review.On the future course of FPI flows, Mishra said that "in the medium term, FPI flows should increase as the domestic economy rebounds and global concerns subside". | foreign investors pumped in net sum of Rs 24,617 crore in the first half of february. investment largely on back of RBI maintaining accommodative stance in recent monetary policy review. equities and debt segment pumped in net sum of Rs 10,426 crore between february 3 and 14. meanwhile, equities and debt segment pumped in net sum of Rs 14,191 crore. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/lamborghini-india-banks-on-healthy-order-book-to-prevent-sales-decline-5509591.html | Italian super sports car maker Lamborghini is banking on a healthy order book to prevent huge sales dip in India this year due to the coronavirus pandemic as it resumes deliveries of vehicles from this month after restarting operations following lockdown relaxations, according to a senior company official. While new orders are slow to come by, Lamborghini India is not witnessing any cancellations of bookings, although some customers have asked for delayed deliveries due to the health crisis.
"We still have a strong order bank for Urus and also we launched the new Evo RWD in the beginning of the year. This helped us to build the order bank for the year, which will be acting as a big support in terms of getting some decent numbers this year," Lamborghini India Head Sharad Agarwal told PTI.
The company, which sold 52 units of its super luxury vehicles that are priced above Rs 2.5 crore in India last year, feels that its sales this year will not match that figure.
"Definitely, we may not hit the same number as last year but this order bank will definitely support us in (preventing) a decline, which is not as bad as the industry," he said, adding "the good thing is whatever order bank we have we have not seen any cancellations and the customers are still committed with us."
Admitting that there are delays in deliveries due to the shutdown of the company's factory in Italy from March 13 to April 25 due to the pandemic, he said there are also some instances where customers are seeking to defer delivery of booked cars by one or two months.
COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show
"This is fair because this is the kind of environment which you can't push. Overall, I still see a positive sign that we are not seeing customers coming and saying now I don't want to take the car," Agarwal added.
From June 8, the company had reopened its dealerships after Unlock 1.0 and has resumed about 50 percent operations. Although the market is moving slowly and gradually, it remains uncertain how the year will go, Agarwal added.
"We have to see how the new orders start coming and we have to see the situation on the ground...The new orders will be slightly slower unless we start seeing positive signals and the business turning more positive because the priorities today are different.
"The motive has changed for people. The motive is to remain relevant, take care of their people, take care of their businesses. It is also reflecting in demand (of vehicles)," he said.
Although the new orders will be primarily for next year, Agarwal said "we are still trying to see orders for November or December production, and then they will start moving for next year. For some models, we are already taking orders for next year."
Agarwal further said the company will resume deliveries from this month as some cars are coming in.
"The factory was closed from March 13 to April 25 and after that the production has started. There are cars which were manufactured in May and June, we are receiving it in July," he said.
On the outlook, he said if the economy slows further the super luxury segment will definitely a decline sharper than the mass volume segment as "the super luxury segment is driven by emotions", although it is difficult to put a number on the decline.
He said ever since the relaxation of lockdown, the overall passenger cars market has witnessed demand at the entry level as a lot of people are looking at having personal mode of transportation and they want to avoid public transport.
"So there will be some uptick in demand in the entry level but luxury, premium and super luxury segments will be seeing much sharper decline because in these segments you really don't need a personal mode of transportation, you already have enough cars in the house," Agarwal said.
Stating that it remains quite uncertain as to how the year will pan out, he said, "We are taking each month as an independent unit and trying to work around that because it is very difficult to plan today what you want to do in Q3 and Q4."
He, however, expressed optimism that next year will be better.
"By Q1 next year, things will turn around and we don't see 2021 as a challenge yet. If some positive results come by the end of Q3 and beginning of Q1 in 2021, things will pick up," Agarwal said. | Lamborghini resumes deliveries of cars from this month after lockdown relaxations. the italian super sports car maker is not witnessing any cancellations of bookings. the coronavirus pandemic has left the company with 52 units of its super luxury vehicles. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. a vaccine works by building herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/services/hotels-/-restaurants/ihcl-forays-into-online-gourmet-food-delivery-with-qmin/articleshow/76625299.cms | New Delhi: Indian Hotels Company IHCL ) announced on Thursday that it is foraying into new culinary offerings through the launch of a new brand called Qmin IHCL's Qmin mobile application to be launched in July 25 will deliver dishes from Taj restaurants in Mumbai such as Golden Dragon and Souk from Taj Mahal Palace , Thai Pavilion and Trattoria from President besides others and will gradually cover other markets such as Delhi, Chennai and Bengaluru over a period of five weeks.The gourmet Qmin shop will open in August and the Qmin will be integrated into the chain's loyalty programme in September.IHCL MD Puneet Chhatwal said leveraging a digital platform will 'augment' the group's existing F&B offerings and will address the consumer demand for online gourmet food delivery services. "Qmin will scale up in the months ahead to include the gourmet Qmin shop with delicatessen based food choices. Taj has been home to our guests for more than a century. With the launch of Qmin we bring Taj to their home," he added.The company said Qmin will follow safety protocols such as contactless delivery and mandatory use of protective gear for delivery executives in sanitized vehicles. As per IHCL, the packaging of these food items will be eco friendly utilizing bio degradable materials, and with customised insulation boxes to preserve the food during deliveries.From July 25, customers can download the app on android and iOS mobile devices. | the gourmet Qmin shop will open in august and the Qmin will be integrated into the chain's loyalty programme in September. the company said the app will follow safety protocols such as contactless delivery and mandatory use of protective gear for delivery executives in sanitized vehicles. the food items will be eco friendly utilizing bio degradable materials, and with customised insulation boxes to preserve the food during deliveries. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/podcast/setting-sail-season-2-ep-2-twitter-india-md-manish-maheshwari-explains-how-india-is-the-fastest-growing-audience-market-globally-5439561.html | In this exclusive podcast, Moneycontol's Priyanka Sahay talks to Twitter India's Managing Director Manish Maheshwari, on his first year on the job, some of the latest features on Twitter, and how the company has managed productivity during the lockdown.
Tune in to the Setting Sail podcast for more.
You can also read the transcript of the interview below:
Priyanka Sahay: Hello and welcome to Moneycontrol. This is Priyanka Sahay, special correspondent and you are tuned into Setting Sail, our weekly podcast that dives through the changing landscape of the tech world and the challenges within.
Social media has come of age in India. With affordable internet access, it has reached to the hinterlands of the country. With over 680 active internet users, the number of people on social media is only increasing every passing day. The medium has helped the population not just with entertainment, but has made a huge impact on the way businesses were done in the country.
To discuss the same and many more aspects today I have with me Manish Maheshwari, Managing Director of microblogging site Twitter, India.
Hi Manish thank you so much for joining us.
Manish Maheshwari: Thanks, Priyanka. Thanks for having me on your show.
Priyanka Sahay: So Manish, you've now spent a year in Twitter. How has your experience been here?
Manish Maheshwari: So indeed, I joined Twitter a year back. But I think my relationship with Twitter goes way longer than that. I signed up for Twitter more than 10 years ago, when I was in the Bay Area. I still remember the month, it was January of 2009. And over the last 10 years as an individual on the service, one thing that has really impressed me about Twitter is that it gives voice to individual and communities.
You can be anyone and you can be on Twitter, and you can have a voice. You can stay updated. You can connect with anyone and have a public conversation. And I think that is something that has really impressed me. And last year, when I became part of Twitter, India, one of the things that came to my attention was, there was a study conducted in 2017 when Twitter went ahead and asked some of its most passionate account holders, what is it that they like about the service?
And you know what Priyanka, what they say? Can you make a guess?
Priyanka Sahay: I wouldn't actually.
Manish Maheshwari: So what they said was this is a service where they get to hear and get exposed to all sides of a conversation, unique perspective. And that allows them to develop a much better understanding of the world around them and connect with what's happening. That is something which I have been experiencing. And I think it also came out to be true for most of our passionate users.
And it has been quite an experience for me in the last one year here. I joined Twitter, India in April, right when the Lok Sabha elections were going on. And the whole platform came live. I mean, this was a time when we had more than 396 million conversations, just around Lok Sabha elections, which was 600% growth over similar conversations five years ago in the previous elections in 2014.
And as soon as we got over with the local elections, we had the IPL and then of course, the Cricket World Cup. And the entire platform came alive with the entire fan community engaging with sports people and cricketers, and commentators commenting on match performance. In fact, the India-Pakistan match I still remember, that was the match when we had one of the highest number of tweets in a single day for a cricket match, it was about 2.9 million tweets in a single day.
So think about it. I mean, amazing experience the last one year. And most recent time, as we see the pandemic unfolding, it's unfortunate. And our service has never been more important. And the work that we do has never been in more demand to serve the public conversation, enable people to stay connected, raise awareness about the right of issues, engage in conversation and stay connected to the Twitter committees.
So really feel fortunate and also quite grateful to the team here, which has focused on the right thing, stayed resilient, and has been doing an amazing job in serving the public conversation on the service.
Priyanka Sahay: Twitter for all we know is a platform which is still is seen as a platform for the influential class maybe if I could say the ‘educated class’. Unlike many of the social media platforms such as Facebook or your recent competitor, TikTok, which has created a large space for itself among the masses.
Now will Twitter want to continue with its existing image in India or there are plans to modify this existing image?
Manish Maheshwari: So Priyanka let me emphasize this. And I mentioned this before as well. So let me reiterate. Twitter is about what's happening in real time. It's your, it is mine, it's everyone's life connection to the world, and how events unfold. And this is especially true in the current times when we are seeing more and more audiences turning to Twitter, to understand and make sense of what's happening around them. Also, stay informed, stay connected and stay entertained. And they are seeking a sense of normalcy and this is what they are getting by coming to this service.
So we are seeing unprecedented usage across all audience segments, and tremendous growth in our audience. And if you look at the numbers, we don't disclose numbers by country but at a global level just in the last quarter, we had a 24% increase in our monetizable daily active users 266 million, which was a highest growth year on year ever recorded.
And coming to a specific point, I mean if you think about it how it is being utilized as a public service. So three things, I think people are leveraging it to stay updated and how is that happening. So we have worked with several health authorities and government bodies to get authoritative information on the platform. We have a dedicated search prompt. So when you search for an information you get information which is from authoritative sources first. So which enables people to stay fully updated and informed with the right information.
The second thing is about connecting. And let me give you some examples of how people are connecting on the platform. Between the lockdown what we saw that there was no on field sports happening. So every sports person was on the platform, running various virtual engagements. And fan battle like example would be IPL, only IPL kind of activities where cricketers and also broadly other sports people, including people like Harmanpreet Kaur, Rani Rampal, Sunil Chhetri engaging with their fan base and building that connection.
The same connection we also saw in the entertainment industry where industry stalwarts like Shahrukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit Nene, even major stars from our South Indian film industry, such as Mahesh Babu, Rajinikanth, they join the conversation encouraging people to stay safe. So that's the area where we are showing a lot of progress in terms of enabling people to stay connected, and also entertain at the same time with everyone joining.
And if you think broadly, right, I mean if you think broadly about what's happening in the world around us, it's also a great public service where people are leveraging this to solve for real challenges. There's an example of a 12-year-old boy who was separated from the family had to take shelter in a park. And it was because of Twitter and someone tweeting about it that this boy was united with the family. Another example I can quote here there's an account called Farmers Harvest Network, and through this distressed farmers who had perishable produce, were able to connect with relevant buyers all the way from mangoes to mushrooms, and held themselves.
And the third example I can give you in that area would be, it's also a platform where people can create movements. So when a couple of students were stranded, we had this hashtag called helpkotastudents through which they were able to connect with authorities and ensure safe passage. So you can see these are real life examples of how people at large across the country are leveraging your service to help themselves and seek solutions to the everyday problems they are facing.
Priyanka Sahay: Right. So if you're saying that, can we have a sense of what is the vernacular presence of Twitter in India? The company is learned to be having over 30 million users in India. And if we could have some vision as to how many of these are non-English speaking users, and what are the profiles of these users?
Manish Maheshwari: Yeah, so let me emphasize at a country level, we don't disclose our audience numbers, but overall our growth has been unprecedented. And I think in that sense, the growth in vernacular users has also been very strong. In fact, I can quote a few numbers to you. So, already on the service, we are seeing that more than 50% of the tweets in India are in non-English. So, immediately after English we have Hindi as a prominent language immediately followed by Tamil and Telugu.
And we are seeing that grow tremendously fast both because of the product improvements we are doing, but also increasingly because the kind of content that is coming on the platform both because of our efforts on the onboarding publishers, but also original content is getting created. And on the other side on the consumption side, there is significantly better discovery, we recently launched a product improvement called Preferred Language Selector.
So, the insight there was that in India, most of the phones have a default language as English and that is taken as a signal to decide what tweets to show. And we already know that more than 50% of tweets in India are not in English. So we gave people a choice to choose their preferred language. And we took that as a signal to decide, among many other signals what to expose. And we saw tremendous growth in the stickiness and engagement of the audience.
People who saw tweets in their native language were four times more likely to stay on the service. In fact, you would also know last year, immediately after I joined we also made investment in ShareChat, a prominent player in the vernacular space. And we believe strongly in the fact that a lot more growth and potential exists in that segment. And we are excited about what that relationship and partnership can do for us.
Priyanka Sahay: Interesting. And coming a little on the business side of it. Now that you're saying that vernacular is all growing in the country, the company still charges a premium for its ad slots as compared to any of the competitors that you have in India. Now, will you be able to drive volume in a price-sensitive market that India is with this strategy? Or there is some tweaking which is in the pipeline?
Manish Maheshwari: So Priyanka, let me start by giving you a bit of a context and understanding about how we think about advertising and helping brands connect with their audience on this service. So, first of all, this is a service on which for any brand, their most valuable audience are available, and they are available at a time and they are most receptive. So, when you are an audience on the platform, you are there to actively seek information, seek connection or stay entertained. So, you have a very leaned kind of an attitude.
And at the same time the audience is such which is sort of the popular voice, people who are leaders, who are opinion makers, people who are looked up by other people in the community at large. So Twitter allows brands to connect with their most valuable audience when they are most receptive. And when we think about helping brands do that we look at it in terms of engagement, and not necessarily in terms of impressions. So when we say engagement, we look at what are they really doing, what the brand intend them to do. For example the brand has a story to tell through a video, are they watching that video, or this brand has a specific call to action, are they taking that call to action?
And that's how we solve for those brand needs. What we do is that we work with the brands, understand their narrative, the message, and what kind of budget they have and what audience they want to reach. And we work with their team, give them advice about the right kind of amplification approach on this service. There are two things we do really well and that is where our true superpower comes to the fore. One is to learn something new. And the second thing is to connect with what's happening.
Let me give you a few examples of how that happens. So this is the platform where news breaks. This is a platform where people learn about something new. So this is an ideal platform for any brand to launch a new product, a new feature, or even a new message. And if they get their launch, right, and they land a narrative, right? It has a multiplier impact on everything else they do, because this narrative then carries on to things outside Twitter as well.
They get a much favorable coverage in the traditional news media. Plus, they get to work with their most leaned-in, and most I would say, forward looking and progressive audience. And that has tremendous success in terms of overall success of the launch so that's on the launching something new.
I also talked about connecting with what's happening. So because this is a service where events are unfolding, movements take place and major things happening around us are driven by the trends that originate from Twitter. It's also an ideal place for brands to leverage the equity of those events, connect with what is happening, and therefore become the front and center of those conversations and derive the right benefit for their brand brands.
For example on Friendship Day, Amazon Prime would work with us. And recently they had a very good relationship working with us on 'Shots of Friendship', primarily helping all their audience to connect virtually talk about interesting stories about their friendship, and also reminisce about great relationship. And everything happened virtually in the form of coffee book, which essentially a set of tweets that people had done on the service through a hashtag called ShotsOfFriendship.
So these are the examples of how brands can leverage those interesting events and occasions to connect and drive a disproportionate impact. Also we launch something called a Promoted Trend Spotlight recently, which combines the impactful usage of a video as a creative asset with the premium placement of that video in the Explore tab. So whenever anyone logs into Twitter and opens the Explore tab, they see that conversation through the Promoted Trend Spotlight, which has a significantly disproportionately positive impact in creating awareness for the brand and also a unique way for them to tell their story in a way that people are most receptive to listen to.
Priyanka Sahay: Now that you have given this 360 degree perspective, I would like to understand that in the last one year’s tenure, what has been the growth reported by India in terms of revenue. And what have been the drivers.
Manish Maheshwari: So again, I talked about it before and let me reiterate, I cannot disclose country-specific numbers. Having said that, because our audience growth has been amazing, in fact, India has been one of the fastest growing audience market for Twitter globally, that has an impact on everything else as well, because more audience and more conversation drives more engagement.
And ultimately, on the advertising side, the way we work with brands is to help them drive engagement. So that has a very positive impact on that side as well. At the same time, the other thing that has also been helping the whole industry is the movement to video. And video has seen tremendous growth, both from the creation side but also on the consumption side and more brands are now leveraging it, including in our case, if you look at it, most creative assets on the brand side and on the advertising side, leverage the power of video.
And video is far more engaged. They have a much better recall so all that is having a positive impact on the growth on the revenue side as well. Plus of course, we are also seeing a secular trend in industry to move marketing dollars to digital, away from print and other sources. And also more so we have seen that because of this digital industry has been growing at a significantly higher rate than print or even TV.
And because we operate in the digital space, we feel fortunate that we now have the opportunity to serve more and more brands and advisors in a much better way to help them tell their story in a way which is not just impactful, but also turns out to be more efficient and effective because that's where the audience is today. And I think there's a much better way of targeting them and make sure that every message is very relevant. And good ads served to the right audience at the right time is also good content. And that's what drives good engagement.
Priyanka Sahay: That's actually a very interesting point, Manish I must say is perhaps music to the ears of many of us who work in the digital platforms across the country right now.
And having said that I will come back on this specific question how brands are leveraging more from digital than the print as of now. But I also want to ask you that Twitter has been experimenting a lot with new launches, if I could call them product launch or vertical launches. Video, of course, you've rightly pointed out.
Fleet is also something which you very recently launched. Now, what is the rationale behind having something as a Fleet? And how is this going to help the brand?
Manish Maheshwari: Yeah. First of all, thanks for bringing that up. Fleets is a very recent thing. And we just launched last week. And personally, I'm very excited with this. So the thinking behind this is by adding other way of conversation, we will enable people to express themselves in new and interesting ways. And we will also enable them to do things that they would not have done. There are two things that distinguishes Fleet from tweeting. One is that whatever your Fleet disappears in 24 hours.
So it can be very light hearted and light touch way of expressing yourself. And the second one is you can avoid the public scrutiny because there is no like there is no retweet. And if you want to solicit any input that you want to get, it comes only from people that you actually follow. It comes in your DM.
So overall, that's an exciting part of it. And we are early in the game, we are still learning. So we'll have to wait for a few more weeks and see how this unfolds. But overall it also underscores the point that India is a really important market for Twitter. And that is why India was chosen among the first three countries to launch this globally. And that is another important aspect of the fact that India is seeing tremendous growth when it comes to our audience.
Just want to make one small correction. In the last question about Fleet, just keep in mind that this is a test what we are doing with Fleet. And India is one of the first three markets to get this thing tested. And as I mentioned, in my previous answer, there's a lot for us to learn. And depending on how it gets used by our audiences, this specific feature, will decide what shape and form it will take. So it's important for us to learn. And I think in that spirit, we launched this test in India as one of the first three markets.
Priyanka Sahay: That's very interesting. And the fact that Twitter is going ahead and saying that it is trying to ensure that as less public scrutiny can happen, it's as good. That’s actually a very good point that you raised Manish.
On the same lines, I would also like to ask you that Twitter has also been experimenting with something called Read The Articles Before Sharing. Now, while on the face of it, it looks very interesting and promising. I also have a concern as an end user. So I would like to ask you very categorically that what business is it of a medium.
In this case, I would say Twitter's to govern the actions of users. How is that relevant for the medium to decide? And Twitter at this point in time, will it make sense for the company to do something like that or there's a larger reason behind why you are doing what you're doing?
Manish Maheshwari: Yeah, no, it's a good question. And let me share some context and perspective on this. First of all, this is an experiment. So we want to learn. So we are experimenting with this. The thinking here is sometimes some articles with a sensational headline can become very viral very quickly, even when people have not read it and fully understood the context. And with that premise or hypothesis. The idea is to explore whether nudging people to read the article or telling them that they did not read it, would it let them be more thoughtful, and engage in healthy conversation?
So if you go back to what I said, we believe in serving the public conversation, and we won't be doing our job well, if that conversation is not healthy. And to ensure the health of the conversation, we need to make sure that the participation is thoughtful and is done with the right spirit. So it just allows us to ensure that we continue to fulfill our larger mission of serving the public conversation and have informed conversation on the platform.
Priyanka Sahay: All right. And coming back to a previous conversation wherein you were talking about how revenue is moving from print to digital now. Could you elaborate a little bit more on that as to what are advertisers looking at in the India market? And what sort of brands are these who are going for a digital first approach in India?
Manish Maheshwari: Yeah. So I'll tell you from what I have been witnessing firsthand, and it's a very good question. I would assume that you would know that as an industry, I mean, this change from advising to digital has been going on for a long time. What has pandemic done is that it has forced every company to think about it more critically and also accelerated digital transformation. It has impacted everyone. And it has impacted some more than the others and that we are seeing now.
In our case, what is happening is we are seeing that certain industries are at the forefront of this transformation. And they are utilizing the current situation in a way that where they can connect with their audience significantly better, so one example would be digital streaming. If you think about it, all the major show launches are now moving to digital, with all theaters being closed, including big name movies are now getting released on the OTT platforms.
And that is where our service comes alive. We work with those players to not only create the right kind of excitement before the launch, but at the time of launch, we ensure that they have the relevant digital footfall to watch their show, and then sustain that momentum after the show as well. So prior to the lockdown, we had a few examples, for example, where we worked with amazon prime video on a series called Family Man, which was a series, I think several months back. And there was a few of them happening a year back.
But in the last three months we have seen week after week, there has been several such launches. The most recent one being Paatal Lok where we worked very closely with the team. Then there was this four more a short series to where we again worked with a leading OTT player. And when I gave you the example of this hashtag ShotsOfFriendship, where people were encouraged to tweet about their friendship and this became ebook comprising of tweets, creating a very sense of community and positivity.
So one example is those kind of brand advertisers. Similarly, we are also seeing tremendous growth in e-learning and particularly when people are focusing a lot more on their personal growth and development. That's also an area where we see tremendous growth. Also, there's a growth in terms of Tech OEMs, people are upgrading their tech devices and with the supply chain sorting out in the last one month, I think that is also growing.
So I see that industry after industry, everyone is readjusting. And at a secular level, the whole move of advertising from print and TV to digital has accelerated. And it allows us better opportunity to help the brands connect with the audience in a way, which is more efficient and also more impactful.
Priyanka Sahay: Interesting. And on that note, I would also like to ask you that going forward, do you see the reverse happening at all once the things come back to the normal? I'm sure we are not anticipating that happening anytime soon. But once the vaccine comes in place, will the shift come back to how it used to be earlier?
Manish Maheshwari: So let me start by sharing with you how we think about it and what we are doing. And we can also talk about broader concepts as well. At Twitter, we don't see work from home as a short term reaction to the pandemic. And we see this as the future of work. And one needs to ask the question as to what is the right way to work? What is the right location, and the right modalities to engage, so that people are most productive, they are most creative and they also feel comfortable and safe?
And from that perspective, we look at it. So clearly, we have been leading the way when it comes to decentralized remote work. We were one of the first companies to declare work from home. And we were also the first companies to also give that choice in a indefinite way in the sense that people do this as long as they feel comfortable about it.
Now, if you think about it, most companies will be faced with that choice. Some companies are better placed to take advantage of the development and technology tools and other things to be more efficient with this change. Some companies will have to catch up. But overall, it's a big reset and a rethink for everyone.
And my point of advice, there would be everyone needs to critically evaluate what is an important piece of work, and what is the best place to get that executed on. And you know what many times the best way to do something is to not to come to office, but to do it in the comfort of your home in a way where you are very productive.
Having said that, it doesn't mean that everyone will have to work from home, our offices will open as soon as it is safe and reasonable to open. And people would have the choice to come back and work from office whenever they want, if that is what is required.
What is the sufficiency and what is the right aspect of doing it? The other bigger issue that it opens up is to also think about the fact that when you think about work from home for a longer duration when you are not engaging with your office colleagues in a physical setting. It also creates other challenges in terms of mental health, engagement and connection. So when we look at that, we take a very principled view on how to deal with that. And our view always has been it is people first, and lead with empathy and flexibility.
So when I say empathy and flexibility and people first I mean four things. So first is about choice. Second is about enablement. Third is about support. And the fourth is about connection. When we think about it, we say that we need to give people choice and let people decide how they want to work and where they want to work so that they can do their most creative work in the most efficient way.
The second one is enablement, which is how do we make sure that they are productive when they are working from home, which includes things like helping them set up a proper working environment. We have something called productivity allowance that people can use to get that done. The third is about support. So are they well supported? And support goes a long way, particularly in tough times like this. And we have a various business resource group or support groups that one can join and get help. We have something called Twitter Parents, for people with kids, we have Twitter Women. We also have Twitter Asians [ph] and so on and so forth.
And finally, it is important to stay connected and feel part of a bigger team. Otherwise, it's very easy to get into isolation and lose productivity. And that's where we have done some very interesting stuff. For example, we had something called storytime with staff. And the insight there was that we realized that parents are going through a lot of challenges at this point in time, and they also are juggling between work and they also have kids and schools are closed, childcare is closed.
And this is a global issue. So we started a weekly series where staff would tell stories. And the first one was done by Jack himself, our Founder and CEO, where he read two stories. In fact, one of the stories was a picture book that he created the age of four, and personally I was quite excited because I was listening to this along with my 10-year-old daughter. It was a great experience to have the Founder and CEO, talk about a story he wrote at the age of four that I could listen to, with my daughter at bedtime.
And that goes on to say how you can erase the physical boundaries, how you can bridge the gap that is there geographically and create the intimacy and that connection instantly by leveraging technology in this current time. So let me pause here. I think there are many examples I can give, for example, the other thing we do in the India office, we do a Happy Hour every Friday after 3pm.
All of us come online and we talk about things which are not work about what show we plan to watch that evening? What new developments happened in our personal life? What book are we reading? What are interesting stuff we have done? And that creates that virtual comradery which we think in the normal time we would do in our office, when we will hang around near the pantry. So interesting time but it requires us to think more critically and adapt ourselves as leaders to ensure that things stay on the right course.
Priyanka Sahay: Well, I must say that you're standing true to the essence of being a social media platform. And I hope that a lot of companies try and take lessons from all the activities that you're doing. It sounds really interesting to me.
And on that note, Manish I would like to about the recent development that Twitter has done internationally. So the company has hired former FBI attorney James Baker, who was involved in the investigation into the Trump campaign and its Russia links during the 2016 Presidential Election.
Now, I would like to ask from you as to what really led to this development and how are you expecting this to be helping Twitter, if you could throw some light on that?
Manish Maheshwari: So Priyanka, I think there are better people who can answer this question in better depth and detail, but the only thing I would like to say is, we are thrilled to welcome Jim Baker. And he is committed to our core principles of an open internet and freedom of expression. And he brings a wealth of experience navigating complex global issues with a principled approach. I think that's what I would like to say at this point in time.
Priyanka Sahay: All right, then. On that note Manish, I would really like to thank you for taking time out for us.
Manish Maheshwari: My pleasure, Priyanka. Thank you for having me on your show.
Priyanka Sahay: So that's all that we have for this episode of Setting Sail. Meanwhile, if you have any comments or queries you can write down to us. Our email is [email protected]. You can also follow us on Twitter with our user IDs at moneycontrolcom and @PriyankaSahay. Till then for more news, views and updates stay logged on to moneycontrol.com. | Priyanka Sahay is a special correspondent for Moneycontol. he talks to manish Maheshwari, Managing Director of twitter, india. he says he has been impressed by the service since joining a year ago. he says he has learned a lot from his experience at twitter. he says he is still learning and is working on a new product. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/how-optical-fibre-cable-connects-chennai-andaman-nicobar/story/412533.html | KEY HIGHLIGHTS
Connectivity will boost opportunities in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands
Will promote ease of business and simplifying Maritime Logistics
Andaman & Nicobar Islands is going to develop as the hub of Port Led Development
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the submarine Optical Fibre Cable (OFC) connecting Chennai and Port Blair. The Chennai-Andaman Nicobar Under Sea Internet Cable Project will give a big boost to the local economy by enabling delivery of faster and more reliable mobile and landline telecom services to Andaman & Nicobar Islands, at par with other parts of India.
This undersea cable will connect seven islands of Andaman & Nicobar Islands including Port Blair, Swaraj Dweep (Havlock), Long Island, Rangat, Little Andaman, Kamorta, Car Nicobar and Greater Nicobar. While up to 400 Gb/s internet speed will be available in Port Blair, up to 200 Gb/s speed will be accessible in other islands.
With the foundation stone for the project laid on December 30, 2018 at Port Blair, this project has been executed by BSNL in the record period of just 20 months. Spanning across 2,313 km, the cost of implementation of the undersea cable laid between Chennai and Port Blair is Rs 1,224 crore.
The project is funded by the Government of India through the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) under the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications. While BSNL executed this project, Telecommunications Consultants India Limited (TCIL) was the technical consultant
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated on the completion of the project before time. He commended the implementation of the cables under sea, surveying under deep sea, maintaining cable quality and using special vessels to deploy cables, which wasn't an easy task, especially given the high waves, storms, monsoon and the tough times owing to coronavirus pandemic.
Under the Act-East policy, the role of Andaman and Nicobar in India's strong relations with East Asian countries and other countries connected to the sea is very high and is going to increase. High Impact Projects are being expanded in 12 islands of Andaman and Nicobar. The major problem of mobile and internet connectivity has been resolved today. Apart from this, physical connectivity through road, air and water is also being strengthened, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
This will not just boost the use of digital services such as tele-education, tele-health, e-governance service but also tourism on the islands. Small enterprises will benefit from opportunities in e-commerce, while educational institutions will utilise the enhanced availability of bandwidth for e-learning and knowledge sharing. Business Process Outsourcing services and other medium and large enterprises will also reap the benefits of better connectivity.
The government is committed to the speedy development of national security linked border areas and island states. Andaman and Nicobar will be developed as a hub of Port Led Development as it is at a Competitive Distance from many ports of the World.
Prime Minister Modi added, "A country which has better network of ports and their connectivity will be able to provide a boost to trade in the 21st Century. Today, when India is moving forward with the resolve of self-sufficiency and is establishing itself as an important player in the Global Supply and Value Chain, it is very important to strengthen our network of Waterways and our Ports." The legal bottlenecks in the development of Port Infrastructure are also being removed continuously.
The government's focus is also on promoting Ease of Business in the sea and simplifying Maritime Logistics. The speedy construction of the deep draft inner harbor and the proposal to construct TransShipment Port in Great Nicobar at an estimated cost of about Rs 10,000 crore would enable big ships to anchor and would increase India's share in maritime trade, along with new employment opportunities.
Also read: PM Modi virtually launches submarine Optical Fibre Cable in Andaman and Nicobar | undersea cable will connect seven islands of andaman & Nicobar islands. a record 20-month project has been executed by BSNL in the region. the cost of the project is Rs 1,224 crore. the project is being expanded in 12 islands of andaman and Nicobar. a spokesman for the project says it will be completed by end of the year. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/ites/tcs-hits-100-billion-market-cap-does-this-mark-a-new-phase-of-growth-for-india-inc/articleshow/63954619.cms | Elevate Your Tech Prowess with High-Value Skill Courses Offering College Course Website MIT MIT Technology Leadership and Innovation Visit Northwestern University Kellogg Post Graduate Certificate in Product Management Visit Indian School of Business ISB Digital Transformation Visit
A record created at the beginning of last week might set the stage for a phase of new growth highs for India Inc.On April 23, the market capitalisation of Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) crossed the $100 billion milestone. It hit a high of $103 billion (Rs 6.8 lakh crore). The shares hit a high of Rs 3,557.00 on the BSE. Though the market capitalisation (m-cap) has slid from the day’s high, it has hovered around that level this week. TCS ’ shares ended at Rs 3,454.80 on April 27, giving it a market capitalisation of $99.27 bn (Rs 6.61 lakh crore, at an exchange rate of Rs 66.62 to a dollar), according to the BSE.This feat has thrown up the question, who is next? The spotlight is on Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank. Reliance Industries had hit a record high on April 27, registering a market cap at Rs 6.3 lakh crore. Next in line are ITC , Maruti Suzuki India and Hindustan Unilever. These companies make up the pack of possible $100 billion entities in India in a few years. TCS is now ranked 104 and Reliance 119 on the global list of companies by market capitalisation. HUL and Maruti are much lower in that order but the companies have been able to grow their market capitalisation at a faster clip over the past few years.Market watchers are now asking if this is the beginning of a new phase of growth for Indian companies, where a bunch of them find mention in the global top 100 companies by m-cap.But experts say crystal-gazing is pointless. The goalposts shift constantly in this game. After all, Reliance did break into the $100 billion club once, on October 18, 2007. That afternoon, 10.57 lakh shares of the company were traded, pushing the stock up by more than Rs 114, to its lifetime high of Rs 2,805. The m-cap hit Rs 4.07 lakh crore. The rupee was at Rs 39.9 to a dollar. It is Rs 66-67 to a dollar today. The timing is right for Reliance to go for a second attempt.Given that a weaker rupee augurs well for TCS, which earns most of its Rs 1,23,100 crore annual revenue through exports, it is likely that the flagship of the Tata group is here to stay in the $100 billion club, or at least in the vicinity of the mark.S Ramadorai, former managing director and vice-chairman of TCS, says any of the top 10 Indian companies by market capitalisation that has an export-oriented business can break into the $100 billion club, provided the rupee depreciates further. Ramadorai, who led TCS between 1996 and 2009 as MD, tells ET Magazine that the key to TCS’ success is the constant focus on technology, people and customer orientation.Ajay Piramal, chairman of Piramal Enterprises and a director of Tata group parent Tata Sons, says: “We applaud TCS on this achievement, which marks a significant milestone for India Inc. Such accomplishments serve to create a ripple effect by infusing a fresh wave of optimism and aspiration among Indian corporates.”MD and CEO of Kotak Mutual Fund Nilesh Shah points out that TCS achieved this growth without raising money from the market after its initial public offering. He identifies rapid growth, consistent and adaptable management and consistent profitability as the three key attributes that can make a company great. “TCS has all three,” he adds.Soon, there will be at least three or four Indian companies in the $100 billion bracket, says Raamdeo Agrawal, joint managing director of Motilal Oswal Financial Services. This achievement has shown the robustness of Indian businesses, he adds.Fund manager Kenneth Andrade also says this is inevitable, if India grows from a $2.2 trillion economy to a $6-7 trillion economy in the next decade. The Indian market has been kept afloat by capital flows for six-seven years. However, it is now entering a phase where corporate profitability will become the main driver. He sees the profitability of the Indian corporate sector doubling in four years. “It cannot happen without a bunch of Indian companies in the top bracket.”Shah of Kotak, however, disagrees with this theory and says only HDFC Bank and Reliance Industries seem poised to enter the $100 billion club anytime soon. First, there is the issue of the moving goalpost, due to the rupee-dollar rate fluctuations. This keeps the $100 billion mark in rupee terms constantly on the move. Second, Shah says, the Indian economy at $2.2 trillion is still small and Indian companies will need to wait for the economy to grow.Keeping the rupee factor aside, there will have to be a constant focus on profitability, along with turnover, to drive the market capitalisation of Indian companies towards $100 billion. Market capitalisation can be a tricky game and is never a flat race, say experts.Take, for instance, Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the biggest Indian company by turnover. It often makes the global 500 list of companies by gross sales. Last year, IOC came in at 161. But it is way behind on market cap, with its profit margins being an abysmally low 5%.But public sector undertakings (PSUs) can play the m-cap game too. The year 2011 saw PSUs like Coal India and ONGC topping the Indian market cap league table for brief periods. HDFC Bank, currently at third position with an m-cap of Rs 4.98 lakh crore, had also raced ahead of Reliance for some time in early 2017.Then there is the question of sustainability on companies that show fast growth in m-cap. Hindustan Unilever recorded a 59.9% growth in m-cap in a year to Rs 3.19 lakh crore, and the scrip is currently trading at a price-earnings multiple of 63. Maruti Suzuki, with Rs 3.3 lakh crore in m-cap, has seen its m-cap grow at a staggering 33% compound annual growth rate for three years. But ITC, which is ahead of both these companies at Rs 3.4 lakh crore, has actually seen no growth in m-cap in the past one year. It has registered a CAGR of 6% over the past three years.The banking sector could throw up the next $100 billion company, especially as talks of a merger are abound in the market. Would a merger of HDFC Bank with HDFC or, say, ICICI Bank; or a merger of Kotak Mahindra Bank and Axis Bank fuel a spurt in market capitalisation in the sector? Kotak’s Shah says such mergers are not necessarily m-cap accretive and can reduce valuations too.To enter this higher echelon of the corporate world, says Shankar Sharma, the cofounder and chief strategist at First Global, Indian companies need to become global in their footprint. “Most large Indian companies do not operate in pure-tech space. This is one reason why we don’t have companies with $100 billion m-cap. Old-economy companies have clients across the world but cannot scale up like a tech company.” TCS entering the $100 billion club, says Sharma, is like a batsman hitting a triple century and should be celebrated.Former Tata Sons director R Gopalakrishnan, who was also part of HUL’s top management before moving to the Tata group, says it makes him emotional to see two companies he has been associated with doing well. Taking the cricket analogy further, he adds: “TCS achieving $100 billion is undoubtedly fantastic, but it is like the crowning glory of one innings. Many more innings loom — to be played and to be won in the years ahead by the same batsman. But to use this triple century in one innings to predict more triple centuries by other batsmen is hope and ambition, rather than a likely outcome.”Piramal says TCS has clearly marked out a pathway for others. “This is a brilliant example of how Indian players can create a global impact by leveraging a values-driven culture, robust corporate governance and a strong entrepreneurial spirit to ensure a constant state of transformative growth,” Piramal adds.The biggest of Indian companies will seek their global place when seeking to grow inorganically, says Ramadorai. “I am sure they will rightfully aim for a position on the global scene. Acquisitions are an ongoing process globally, based on merits and synergies, and I am confident that Indian multinational companies will continue to play an active role.”Shah of Kotak Mutual Fund says TCS’s success will surely rub off on brand India. “When a company reaches the $100 billion mark, it starts to create a brand name for itself. The brand value thus created rubs off on the country from which it originates. Brand India stands to gain significantly from TCS’ achievement. Beyond that, employee morale goes up, client opening become easy, growth becomes easier and as a company, you don’t ha ve to hard sell yourself to get clients once you reach that mark. You just have to keep up the quality of your delivery.” | the market capitalisation of Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) crossed the $100 billion milestone. it hit a high of $103 billion (Rs 6.8 lakh crore) the shares hit a high of Rs 3,557.00 on the BSE. the spotlight is on Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank. next in line are ITC, Maruti Suzuki India and Hindustan Unilever. | Positive |
https://www.livemint.com/auto-news/indian-electric-motorcycle-start-up-commences-delivery-of-kridn-11609142816598.html | One Electric has begun deliveries of their electric motorcycle , KRIDN in Hyderabad and Bengaluru through their distribution partners, whose details are available on the company's website.
"Hyderabad and Bengaluru have shown very high interest in pre-bookings, therefore we have started from these cities. Dealer feedback from test rides shows that the customers are surprised at the excellent performance in speed and power coming from an electric motorcycle. Customers are also happy about riding a powerful motorcycle without gears. The only part which requires explanation is how the total cost of ownership is actually lower than petrol vehicles. Therefore, Finance at low interest rates, will definitely play an important role in EV adoption," said Gaurav Uppal, CEO, One Electric.
One Electric will commence deliveries in Tamil Nadu and Kerala next month in January 2021, followed by Maharashtra and Delhi NCR thereafter.
"Since ours is an 80 per cent plus localized motorcycle, the Farmers protest in NCR along with skyrocketing raw material prices are posing a challenge to the smooth rollout. However, we had also not truly anticipated the challenges of supply chain management of a vehicle. Most of the bottlenecks have now been addressed and we expect a smoother scaling up of operations in the coming year," added Gaurav.
The company claims that they have also received interest from International clients for their product. The company is in talks with various potential partners for South America, Africa and Middle East markets. One Electric has targeted presence in 3 continents by the end of 2021.
Gaurav added, "Receiving interest from the international market has been a great validation of our product's design and specifications. We are in advanced stages of talks to enter the Africa market. Taxi segment called Boda Boda in east Africa is of special interest to us and we hope to start trials shortly in coming 3-4 months. However deliveries in the export markets will start only after our target rollout for India has been achieved and streamlined."
Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more. | one electric has begun deliveries of their electric motorcycle, KRIDN in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. the company will commence deliveries in Tamil Nadu and Kerala next month in January 2021. the company is in talks with various potential partners for South America, Africa and Middle East markets. the company has targeted presence in 3 continents by the end of 2021. a spokesman for one electric said the company is "very pleased" with the progress made. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/haryana-to-host-world-union-of-wholesale-markets-in-gurugram/articleshow/63835626.cms | Haryana due to a lot of geographical similarities between the two markets.
will host the next World Union of Wholesale Markets (WUWM) Conference at Gurugram in the month of October this year as an agreement in this regard has been signed between Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, OP Dhankar and Don Donald chairman, WUWM at Barcelona.A high-level delegation led by Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Mr O.P Dhankar is on its visit to Barcelona, Spain to attend the WUWM Conference and study the best market practices. The WUHM is an International Organisation of 65 countries having members of around 200 Wholesale Markets across the World. It has its Four Regional Groups for Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa. This is the only apex organization dealing exclusively in Agricultural Produce Wholesale Markets irrespective of their Management pattern, may be Government, Local Authority, Private, Public-Private jointly. The objective is to promote Wholesale Markets across the world in uniform manner by systems, processes, technology, transparency and trade by exchange of information.The agriculture minister, who visited largest fruit and vegetable market at Mercabarna, maintained that the world famous market, of Spain can be a model for the International fruits and vegetable being set up at Gannuar, Sonipat inHe said that this market has been developed over an area of 225 acres. More than 700 companies have set up their shops in this market and 1400 trucks carrying fruits and vegetables come to the market every day. He said that this market has a huge turnover of about Rs 2080 crore and has a sale of over ten lakh tonnes of fruits and vegetables, 73,000 tonnes of fish and 22,000 tonnes of meat. He said that 35 per cent of the stock arrived in the mandi is exported to other countries. Most importantly, 30,000 tones waste in the mandi is recycled. The mandi which has been set up in a planned manner could become a model for the international fruits and vegetable market at Ganaur in Sonepat district, he added. | agriculture and farmers’ welfare minister, OP Dhankar is on its visit to Barcelona, Spain to attend the WUWM Conference. the world famous market at Mercabarna has a huge turnover of about Rs 2080 crore and has a sale of over ten lakh tonnes of fruits and vegetables, 73,000 tonnes of fish and 22,000 tonnes of meat. the mandi which has been set up in a planned manner could become a model for the international fruits and vegetable being set up at Gannuar in Sone | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/strong-growth-to-continue-rajesh-gopinathan-ceo-tcs/articleshow/68881711.cms |
looks to sustain double-digit growth as companies step up technology expenditure that’s critical to their future, itstold ET in an interview following fourth-quarter earnings, which were announced on Friday. Net profit rose by a better-than-expected 17.7% and TCS said it had the strongest revenue growth in 15 quarters. The company is being courted by CEOs of global organisations, who want the TCS brass to talk to their boards and management teams to explain how technology is disrupting businesses across industries. Edited excerpts:I see no reason why it would not happen. The inherent demand is there. We have seen the supply (talent) side sorted out. The demand is there, talent is there... subject to any external impact, we should be able to sustain this kind of growth.We are talking about technology becoming really integral to the value chain of multiple industries. One way of characterising that... in any industry (if) $100 is spent today and let's say technology has a 3% share of that. If you ask them... five years from now, will technology be a larger share of $100 or less?Almost invariably in every industry (the answer) is that it will be larger. As long as you’re disciplined (and) have a good portfolio of products and services, demand perenniality is phenomenal.The visa situation will keep on evolving. It will reflect the politics of that time as well as inter-country dynamics. We need to be cognizant of it, and position ourselves to be able to deal with it. I don’t think we are particularly or individually impacted, as long as it is a common impact across the industry. It will have some cost implications, beyond that it doesn’t. Our thrust to the regulator is the same—make sure regulations are even handed and we are committed to be compliant with all jurisdictions we operate in. We push to make sure it is a level playing field. We will have to hire locally. We are making a strategic move of intervening early in the US supply cycle by integrating at high-school level.Our programmes are intended to increase throughput of the supply chain. They have a phenomenal university system. We have to make sure we attract students to go through that. Margins at the end of the day are a factor of relative competitiveness. As competitive difference erodes, margins erode. If competitive difference is high, margins go up.Capital markets will be the ones that will be the most impacted, because they react fastest. Others react more slowly. I have given up predicting it. We are focused on our customers. Obviously, there is nervousness, everybody reads the same newspapers, listens to the same commentary. It is becoming an echo chamber. Our advice to our teams is that in times of uncertainty, increase contact with the customers. We also travel to get a first-hand feel.We are building IP embedded with the services we do. We are already building platforms and solutions to customers. As engineers, we look at the elegance of the solution. We are pricing for the effort. The effort has been reduced because of the elegance of the solution we have developed. We need to price it for the impact of the solution. We are leaving huge money on the table. Our pricing paradigms have to change. There are huge opportunities to do that.We are at an inflection point where technology becomes much more integral to organisations and this dynamic is only going to accelerate over time. You are seeing this in the automobile (sector) and in healthcare. Name the sector, you're seeing technology coming in and disrupting it. The first phase is typically disruption of the existing players, but then there is a mixed second phase, like what you are seeing in retail, where there is strong rebound from existing players. Like in any major shifts there are winners and losers. The important thing is that it is (because of) technology, we are well positioned to participate in this churn.As technology is becoming a strategic element of strategy, CEOs want to be directly involved. It is not just that we are reaching to the CEOs and boardrooms, they themselves are coming and investing time. Last time we had CEO of Marks & Spencer spend a day with us. They're investing their time directly, because this has become such a critical component of their strategy. We are walking towards them and they are walking towards us. The engagement levels are very high. They're calling us in to present to their board of directors and to the management teams.In automobile industry, the whole electric car shift was supposed to kill off (traditional) auto companies. They are coming back strongly. Even in shared mobility space, the auto guys are going in with a strong presence. Tier I suppliers (to auto companies) are also re-architecting themselves. In media again, you are seeing a fightback. The game is still on but you can see the fightback coming. First the distributor gets power, then the content owner gets its act together and then the power game shifts. Netflix was smart enough to realise, it is quickly building a content engine before content partners with the distribution engine. Huge amount of money is being spent on it. Let's see how it plays out. Industry after industry is doing it. | net profit rose by a better-than-expected 17.7% and TCS said it had the strongest revenue growth in 15 quarters. 'we are talking about technology becoming really integral to the value chain of multiple industries,' says steve. 'we are making a strategic move of intervening early in the US supply cycle by integrating at high-school level' | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/hurun-global-rich-list-2020-amazon-bezos-retains-top-spot-mukesh-ambani-richest-in-asia/story/407799.html | Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is still the richest person in the world, thanks to surge in his wealth in four months since COVID-19 pandemic, according to a latest report by Hurun Research. With a net worth of $160 billion, Bezos, 56, retained the top spot as his wealth zoomed from $20 billion in four months since COVID-19 pandemic. He added $7 million every hour for the past four months, as per the special report titled "Wealth Impact 4 months after COVID-19 Outbreak". The report measured wealth changes in the four months ending May 31, 2020.
Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industrial Limited (RIL), was the only Asian to feature in the Global Top 10 list. Ambani, 63, improved his position by one slot to become 8th richest person in the world as his "wealth bounce back $18 billion in last two months, after losing $19 billion in first two months after outbreak". The net worth of Mukesh Ambani fell by 1 per cent to $66 billion, despite stellar performance by his flagship company RIL whose share price hit record high in recent past.
Ambani saw a "V-shaped recovery" in his wealth, wherein the net worth fall in the first two months and recouped all the losses in the next two months, the report said.
Also Read: Mukesh Ambani becomes 9th richest person after RIL share hits fresh high
The RIL share has risen 108 per cent from its 52-week low of Rs 867.82 touched on March 23 to Rs 1,804.10 on June 22 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The market capitalisation of Reliance Industries crossed $150 billion on Monday.
In a similar trend, Mark Zuckerberg, co-founder and CEO of the social media giant Facebook, saw his wealth drop by $13 billion in first two months of outbreak, but then recovered the same amount to rise to the 4th spot in the list of world richest persons.
Among other, Colin Huang Zheng, of Chinese e-commerce platform Pinduoduo, was the fastest riser of the Hurun Global Rich List Top 100 of the past four months, seeing his wealth almost double to $35 billion.
Also Read: Reliance Industries 1st Indian company to hit $150 billion market cap; Mukesh Ambani in world's top 10 richest
Another big winner was Eric Yuan Zheng, 50, of popular video conferencing app Zoom, who saw his wealth triple from $4.5 billion in January to $13 billion, propelling him up from 555th in the world four months ago to knocking on the door of the world's Top 100 today.
The biggest losers in the last four months were French billionaire business magnate Bernard Arnault and Warren Buffett, each down $18 billion, followed by Carlos Slim Helu, down $17 billion, and Amancio Ortega of Inditex, down $14 billion.
"Bernard Arnault and Warren Buffett were the biggest losers, down $ 18 billion each over the past four months. For Arnault it could have been a lot worse, since he was down $ 30 billion in the first two months after the outbreak, but managed to claw back $ 12 billion in the following two months," said Rupert Hoogewerf, Hurun Report chairman and chief researcher.
Also Read: Working to complete contours of $15 billion Saudi Aramco deal, says Mukesh Ambani
In the four months since the outbreak, 60 per cent of the entrepreneurs saw their wealth rise or stay the same, whilst 40 per cent were down. "Whilst the first two months of the outbreak saw a massive wealth wipeout of the Hurun Global Top 100, the second two months saw a V-shaped recovery for two-thirds of the Hurun Global Top 100, reminding us that it is dangerous to bet against the world's best wealth creators," said Hoogewerf.
Stock markets across the world dropped significantly in the first two months after the coronavoirus outbreak but clawed back some of the losses in the second two months. India, the UK and France were down around 20 per cent, with the NYSE, Japan, HK and Germany down around 10 per cent. Mainland China's stock exchanges were down slightly at 4 per cent, whilst the only major stock market to see a gain was NASDAQ, up 4 per cent.
Among currencies, the British pound and Indian rupee were down 5.6 per cent and 5.3 per cent, respectively, against the dollar, whilst the Chinese yuan and Euro were up 2 per cent and 1 per cent, respectively.
In terms of countries, while China added 3 individuals to the world's top 100 billionaires, the US, Russia and Italy each added one in the four months to May 31, 2020. Currently, the US has 39 in the Top 100, compared to 26 from China. "China has narrowed the gap with the USA at the top of the Hurun Global Rich List, from 13 down to 11," the report said. | amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos is still the richest person in the world. his net worth of $160 billion has surged in four months since the pandemic. he added $7 million every hour for the past four months. he is the only Asian to feature in the global top 10 list. he is the eighth richest person in the world. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/companies/infosys-sets-up-digital-innovation-centre-in-providence-us-3527521.html | 8 | Infosys | Market Cap for the week ended October 30: Rs 4,51,753.23 crore crore | Loss during the week: 26,152.79 crore.
India's second-largest IT services firm Infosys has set up a digital innovation and design centre in Providence, US, and said it has hired over 100 people in the state of Rhode Island.
This hiring is part of its target of creating 500 jobs in the state by 2022, Infosys has said in a statement.
In May 2017, Infosys had announced that it will set up four technology and innovation hubs and hire about 10,000 locals in the US over a two-year period. Of this target, it has already recruited over 7,600 staff.
These technology and innovation hubs are being set up in Indianapolis (Indiana), Raleigh (North Carolina), Hartford (Connecticut), and Phoenix (Arizona).
The Providence Centre, Infosys said, will help close the gap for design and human-centric skills in technology fields and enhance the company's ability to provide digital technologies.
The centre will offer early-career designers and design graduates training opportunities with in-demand digital skills, including exposure to systems, platforms, strategy and organisation domains, to make them more employable in today's digital world, it added.
Infosys clients and industry partners will benefit from increased access to top-tier designers and subject matter experts.
Besides, Infosys has also partnered with the Community College of Rhode Island (CCRI) to build and launch the Digital Economy Aspirations Lab (DEAL) to train students for digital jobs.
“Critical thinking led by the practice of strategic design is key to building the world-class, human-centric solutions our clients need to accelerate their digital transformations,” Infosys CEO Salil Parekh said.
The demand for talent with strategic design skills will only rise, and Infosys is training American workers in these skills, keeping them and our clients on the front lines of innovation, he added.
Parekh, who took over the top job last year, has outlined ‘localisation', along with strategic investments and enhancing company's digital capabilities as key areas of this three-year strategic plan. The strategy outlined focussed on stabilising the company's business in 2018-19, building momentum the next year, followed by acceleration in 2020-21.
North America is the largest market for Infosys accounting for 60.4 percent of its topline, followed by Europe (24.2 percent), rest of the world (12.8 percent) and India (2.6 percent) at the end of December 2018 quarter.
The Digital Economy Aspirations Lab will be housed at Infosys' Providence Center, with plans to open more Labs at CCRI campuses and expand nationally, the statement said.
Infosys will also form a joint task force with CCRI representatives from across the state to co-develop bridge programming to support pathways to four-year degree programmes and enable community college students to pursue careers in information technology.
Infosys has previously announced a partnership with Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) as well.
The Bengaluru-based company has also been approved for incentives under Rhode Island's Qualified Jobs Incentive Act, the Rebuild Rhode Island program, and the state's First Wave Closing Fund, the statement said.
Infosys, like many of its peers, has been ramping local hiring in key markets like the US, the UK and Australia to tackle increasing scrutiny around work visas by various governments.
In November last year, Infosys said it will set up three innovation hubs in Australia and create 1,200 jobs in the country by 2020. | india's second-largest IT services firm has set up a digital innovation and design centre in Providence, US. it said it has hired over 100 people in the state of Rhode island. this hiring is part of its target of creating 500 jobs in the state by 2022. of this target, it has already recruited over 7,600 staff. the Providence centre will help close the gap for design and human-centric skills in technology fields. | Positive |
http://www.financialexpress.com/industry/saudi-oil-minister-khalid-al-falih-says-country-interested-in-indian-refineries/1078165/ | To deepen ties between Saudi Arabia and India, the oil-rich nation’s Saudi Aramco oil company plans to invest in Indian refineries apart from the West Coast refinery. “Aramco is also looking at other opportunities to buy into existing refineries in India and upgrades of existing refineries. So, there are at least three different tracks which I cannot reveal more specifics. One is the greenfield west coast refinery, which is already public, but there are discussions with expansions as well as buying stake into major existing refinery assets,” said Khalid al-Falih, the oil minister of Saudi Arabia, who is also the chairman of the company.“Agreements have been already signed that allows discussions to start on the configuration of the refinery, on design basis and pre-feasibility studies,” he said. This comes a day after Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the country has offered Saudi Arabia a stake in the future strategic oil reserves and has also offered investment opportunities in the west coast refinery and Kakinada petrochemicals plants. The Saudi minister, who also holds the industry portfolio for his country, said he is looking at deeper ties beyond oil with India.
He said, “I come in my capacity today as minister of energy and industry. I am not only looking for oil and energy partnerships, but also petrochemicals, fertilisers, power projects in India that are of attraction to the champions of those fields in Saudi Arabia…”
Falih further added, “India is growing at the fastest rates among the G-20 nations, and it is one of the top eight economies today. So, we want to cement the ties and capture those emerging opportunities including India becoming a big investor in Saudi Arabia as well as finding opportunities for Indian exports and the Make in India strategy of Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi to leverage the Middle-east’s largest economy, and the anchor of our region with Saudi Arabia.” India has sought reasonable oil prices for its refiners from Saudi Arabia and also participate in the strategic oil reserves. India has built a strategic reserve capacity of 5.3 million tonnes across three locations — Vishakhapatnam (1.33 million tonnes), Mangaluru (1.5 million tonnes) and Padur (2.5 million tonnes) — costing Rs 4,098 crore.
More reserves will be added in the coming future and a Cabinet approval will be sought within six months, Pradhan said on Friday. Talking about the interest of Saudi Arabia in India’s retail business, Falih said, “In principle yes. But I will leave that to Aramco downstream organisations to look at. I’m not used to the complexities.” India has already signed a business agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company to fill the Mangaluru reserve. | Saudi Arabia is looking at deepening ties with india. the oil-rich nation's Saudi Aramco oil company plans to invest in Indian refineries. the company is also looking at other opportunities to buy into existing refineries in india. the company has offered Saudi Arabia a stake in the future strategic oil reserves. the west coast refinery and Kakinada petrochemicals plants are also being considered. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/market/mindspace-business-parks-reit-files-offer-document-for-ipo-plans-to-raise-rs-4500-crore/2027630/ | Mindspace Business Parks REIT today filed its Offer Document with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the public issue that will help it raise Rs 4,500 crore. The real estate investment trust, backed by K Raheja Group and private equity firm Blackstone, is aiming to raise Rs 1,000 crore through a fresh issue and Rs 3,500 crore from an offer for sale (OFS) where Blackstone and K Raheja Group will part with some part of their holdings. Mindspace Business Parks REIT filed its draft prospectus in December last year and a revised prospectus was filed in June.
According to the document filed with the market regulator, Mindspace Business Parks REIT is looking to raise Rs 1,250 crore from strategic investors. Mindspace Business Parks REIT will be the second public issue of a REIT after Embassy Office Parks REIT raised close to Rs 5,000 crore last year. Capital Income Builder, American Funds Insurance Series – Capital Income Builder, Capital Group Capital Income Builder, Capital Group Capital Income Builder (Canada), American Funds Insurance Series – Global Small Capitalization Fund, GIC Private Limited (for and on behalf of Government of Singapore), GIC Private Limited (for and on behalf of The Monetary Authority of Singapore), Fidelity Central Investment Portfolios LLC, Fidelity Emerging Markets Equity Central Fund – Real Estate Sub, and Fidelity Investment Trust: Fidelity Emerging Asia Fund are some of the strategic investors.
Mindspace Business Parks REIT, with a total leasable area of 29.5 msf and over 170 tenants. Although the investment trust was able to collect 99.4% of their Gross Contracted Rentals for the month of March 2020, properties were not fully occupied by their tenants for the months of April and May 2020. In financial year 2020, Mindspace Business Parks REIT earned Rs 1,600 crore from operations. The revised draft prospectus filed last month by the company says a 10.6% growth in revenue from operations is expected this fiscal while the same is expected to clock at 23% in financial year 2022.
Some of the marquee tenants of Mindspace include Accenture, Qualcomm, Barclays, JP Morgan, UBS, and Amazon. The bid-offer opens on July 27 and closes on July 29. Between financial year 2017 and financial year 2020, the company leased 7.6 msf of office space; achieved average re-leasing spreads of 28.9% on 3.0 msf of re-leased space and leased 4.6 msf of new area (including Pre-Leased Area and Committed Area, as of March 31, 2020) to 60 tenants; achieved re-leasing spread of 23.1% for 1.1 msf of area re-leased during fiscal year 2020. | the real estate investment trust is backed by K Raheja Group and private equity firm Blackstone. it is aiming to raise Rs 1,000 crore through a fresh issue and Rs 3,500 crore from an offer for sale (OFS) the company is aiming to raise Rs 1,250 crore from strategic investors. it will be the second public issue of a REIT after Embassy Office Parks REIT raised close to Rs 5,000 crore last year. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/union-budget-is-growth-oriented-positive-says-bse-md-ashishkumar-chauhan-4176871.html | The 10 most valued domestic companies together added a whopping Rs 4,04,068.05 crore in market valuation last week, with RIL and HDFC Bank leading the gains. Here are the top 10 firms according to their market capitalisation for the week ended April 9:
The Union Budget for 2019-20 is growth-oriented, uses a variety of methods to bolster investment cycle led by government spending and overall is positive, BSE MD & CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan said.
The budget has outlined several new reform initiatives like big privatisation push, relaxation of norms for foreign portfolio investors, further liberalisation of foreign direct investment (FDI) policy, a new policy on rental housing and most importantly, incentives for faster adoption of next generation technologies such as electric vehicles, he said.
In a report titled "Union Budget 2019 - A Blueprint for a USD 5 trillion economy", Chauhan said, "The Budget advocates policies via four pillars of thrust that can push the Indian economy to a level of USD 5 trillion - in sync with Prime Minister Modi's vision."
The first continues to focus on increasing investment led by government spending. The budget emphasises on removing critical bottlenecks that hinder the growth of the economy in the second pillar of growth, he said.
The primary challenge facing the government is jobs, and the third pillar focuses on job creation and type of jobs for the future.
In the fourth pillar, the Finance Minister rolled out number of steps to boost core areas such as agriculture, healthcare, education, social welfare and rural development, he added.
A number of measures for capital markets and IFSC, in consultations with regulators are also proposed.
"Overall, this is a positive budget, with continued focus on fiscal prudence, boosting infrastructure, augmenting MSME's and NBFC's, improving skill development and focus on next-gen technologies," he added.
According to Chauhan, the government in its earlier term was largely focused on repairing the stressed banking system and undertaking structural economic resets.
In this term, the expectation from the government was to propel the economy and break away from the barriers holding it back.
"In this regard, the finance minister, in her maiden speech, has delivered a bold budget. The budget is growth oriented, spurs private investment, keeps government's fiscal consolidation track record intact and uses a variety of methods to bolster the investment cycle led by government spending," Chauhan added. | the 10 most valued domestic companies added a whopping Rs 4,04,068.05 crore in market valuation last week. the budget has outlined several new reform initiatives like big privatisation push, relaxation of norms for foreign portfolio investors. the government has also rolled out number of steps to boost core areas such as agriculture, healthcare, education, social welfare and rural development. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/knitwear-exporters-realtors-welcome-rbi-repo-rate-cut-3499091.html | Realtors and knitwear exporters' body in Tamil Nadu on February 7 hailed the reduction of repo rates by the Reserve Bank, saying it would pave the way for the growth of investment and exports.
Chennai-based realtor Akshaya Pvt Ltd Chairman and CEO T Chitty Babu said the repo rate cut was "indeed a positive step to revive the real estate sector. It will allow the banks to pass the rate cut benefits on home and other loans to customers".
House of Hiranandani, Founder-Director, Surendra Hiranandani said, the repo rate cut would positively impact the economy ahead of the elections. "The overall direction of the monetary policy is oriented towards growth and the change in stance provides the central bank much needed flexibility to meet growth challenges in future", he said.
The rate cut augurs well for the real estate sector, he said, adding it is upto banks to reduce lending rates and ensure that the common man reaps the benefit. Tirupur Exporters' Association President Raja M Shanmugham said the decision to change monetary policy stance from calibrated tightening to neutral gives confidence that there would not be any interest hike in the near future.
"By taking into account of this, all banks will come forward to pass on the reduction of interest rate to the borrowing units, which is desperately required for the knitwear garment exporting units, particularly to MSME exporting units", he said in a statement in Coimbatore.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on February 7 reduced repo rate (at which RBI lends to banks) by 0.25 percent to 6.25 percent, a move that will translate into softening interest rates. | realtors and knitwear exporters' body hails RBI's repo rate cut. the move will pave the way for the growth of investment and exports. the move will translate into softening interest rates. the RBI on February 7 reduced repo rate by 0.25 percent to 6.25 percent. a spokesman for the RBI says the move is a "positive step" | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/dow-jones-falls-as-fed-chief-warns-of-lasting-economic-hit/articleshow/75719924.cms | Creditors have withdrawn 26,518 insolvency cases involving defaults of as much as ₹9.33 lakh crore before their applications were admitted by the adjudicating authority since the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) came into force.
IndiGo may introduce a premium class of seats along with hot food and a loyalty programme by the end of 2024, as India’s largest airline looks to court more business flyers and rival Air India on international routes, said people with knowledge of the matter.
The initial public offering (IPO) market is in an unprecedented bull wave. Three of the four IPOs — Tata Technologies, Flair Writing Industries, and Gandhar Oil Refinery — which opened on Wednesday were fully subscribed within hours of opening.
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Top Trending Stocks: SBI Share Price | creditors have withdrawn 26,518 insolvency cases involving defaults of as much as 9.33 lakh crore. IndiGo may introduce a premium class of seats along with hot food and a loyalty programme by the end of 2024. the initial public offering (IPO) market is in an unprecedented bull wave. three of the four IPOs — Tata Technologies, Flair Writing Industries, and Gandhar Oil Refinery — which opened on Wednesday were fully subscribed within hours of opening | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/ril-hdfc-bank-drive-sensex-748-pts-higher-investors-get-richer-by-rs-2-08-lakh-crore/articleshow/77349862.cms | Agencies Sensex winners & losers (Source: BSE)
Sensex jumps 2.03% or 748 to close at 37,688
Nifty rises 1.94% or 211 points to close at 11,103
Rs 2.08 lakh crore added to investors’ wealth
19 of 30 Sensex stocks close higher
RIL top Sensex gainer, jumps 7.1%
RIL contributes over half of benchmark’s gains
HDFC Bank up 3.94% on new CEO appointment
Top Sensex losers: TechM down 2.75%, IndusInd 2.11%
Market breadth positive; advance-decline ratio 1.8:1
Minnows underperform; BSE Midcap up 1.02%, smallcap 1.23%
BSE Energy top gainer, up 5.60%; RIL leads
BSE Finance up 2.09%; Dolat Investments up 14.22%, MCX 8.78%
YES Bank up 2% as Moody’s upgrades rating
Wockhardt jumps 10% on Covid vaccine agreement with UK govt
Kansai Nerolac down 2.92% as Q1 net drops 79%
The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), headed by RBI Governor, is scheduled to meet for three days beginning August 4 and will announce its decision on August 6.
The coronavirus cases in India are yet to peak and are witnessing a record surge each day and are a major cause of worry.
The movement of global markets will be closely watched as the domestic market tends to follow suit.
Progress on a domestic as well as overseas vaccine for Covid-19 treatment will be closely watched.
The ongoing June quarter corporate earnings season is providing a better picture of the impact caused by the Covid19-induced lockdown. More than the numbers for the quarter, the commentary and the outlook have been the moniterables.
Mumbai: Benchmark equity indices snapped four-session losing streak and jumped over 2 per cent on Tuesday, helped by strong gains in index heavyweights Reliance Industries (RIL) and HDFC Bank. Recovery in Indian exports , upbeat Asian markets and promising US manufacturing data also helped the sentiment.Today's surge added Rs 2.08 lakh to investor wealth in terms of market capitalization of the BSE-listed companies. Sensex jumped 748 points to close at 37,688 while peer Nifty climbed 211 points to end at 11,103.“Indian benchmark indices ended the day with gains with positivity emerging post the RBI decision to approve the new CEO for HDFC Bank. Private banks and RIL supported the gains in the benchmark indices. Global cues were also mostly positive, and aided the markets, following better US manufacturing data,” said Vinod Nair, head of research at Geojit Financial Services.“With Indian exports reaching almost the same level on a YoY basis, economic activities are showing signs of revival which offset concerns about the increasing virus infections and the uncertainties that this brings across,” he added.Nair said that while the markets were looking to consolidate, the current liquidity can ensure that any corrections will be bought into.The country's exports in July have reached almost the level of the corresponding month last year, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Tuesday, adding that several indicators are reflecting that the economic activities are reviving in the country.Improving sales or auto companies in July from a month ago led to hopes that the much-needed recovery was closer than earlier expectations. Maruti Suzuki, India’s largest carmaker, surged over 3 per cent to Rs 6,360. HeroMoto also spiked nearly 3 per cent to Rs 2,707.A total of 19 of 30 Sensex stocks closed higher.Oil-to-telecom conglomerate RIL contributed 431 points to Sensex’s gains as it jumped 7.10 per cent on reported that the company was close to sealing a deal with Future Group for acquiring their retail business. The stock has been trading on a volatile note post its annual general meeting on July 15. The scrip has surged nearly 150 per cent from its March lows.Top private lender HDFC Bank celebrated the appointment of new CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan and rose 3.94 per cent to end at Rs 1,041.40 per share. The bank’s succession plan was keenly awaited. The private sector lender informed in an exchange filing that it has received the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) approval for his appointment.The bulls were back on the forefront, with advancing shares beating the declining ones in the ratio of 1.8:1 on the BSE. The broader market underperformed, with BSE mid and smallcap indices rising 1.02 per cent and 1.23 per cent, respectively. BSE Energy index was the top sectoral gainer and jumped 5.61 per cent, followed by BSE Finance index which climbed 2.09 per cent.Only BSE IT and BSE Teck indices closed in the red. They shed 0.73 per cent and 0.45 per cent, respectively. YES Bank climbed 2 per cent after the rating agency Moody's Investors Service upgraded the private lender's long-term foreign-currency issuer rating to B3 from Caa1.Wockhardt surged 10 per cent after the biotechnology major said it has entered into an agreement with the UK government to fill-finish Covid-19 vaccines.Kansai Nerolac dropped 2.92 per cent as the paint maker reported a 79.42 per cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 29.64 crore for the first quarter ended June .Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) pumped in a net of $1.1 billion or Rs 8,590 crore in Indian shares in July, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) pulled out a net of Rs 10,143 crore from the asset class in the month.Globally, Asian shares advanced thanks to strong US manufacturing data and upbeat tech stocks, though broader worries about the coronavirus and global economy saw some markets trim early gains, Reuters reported. | Sensex jumped 748 points to close at 37,688. Sensex adds Rs 2.08 lakh to investor wealth. Sensex jumped 1.94% or 211 points to close at 11,103. Sensex jumped 2.03% or 748 to close at 37,688. Sensex jumped 1.94% or 211 points to close at 11,103. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/pc-jeweller-cuts-debt-by-10-to-rs-4064-crore-in-q1-fy19-2866481.html | live bse live
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PC Jeweller has cut its net debt by about 10 percent during the first quarter of the current fiscal to Rs 4,064 crore and targets to bring it down to less than Rs 3,000 crore by September. In an analyst presentation, the company said it has "voluntarily repaid bank debt of Rs 426 crores in Q1 FY19".
After the repayment, the company's net debt declined to Rs 4,064 crore as on June 30, from Rs 4,490 crore as on March 31, 2018. PC Jeweller said it has reduced bank liabilities from internal accruals and better realisations from inventory.
The company said it has Rs 1,162 crore as cash balance in books of accounts. This fund would be utilised "to further reduce our bank liabilities to less than Rs 3,000 crore by September end", the company said.
PC Jeweller has posted 4.5 percent growth in its net profit at Rs 142 crore during the first quarter of this fiscal. Its sales rose by 14.4 per cent to Rs 2,423 crore for the quarter ended June. Out of total sales, domestic market contributed Rs 1,616 crore while exports were to the tune of Rs 807 crore.
The company said it will focus on stronger branding, customer acquisition and same store sales growth along with expansion of franchisee network.
Established in 2005, PC Jeweller is engaged in the business of manufacturing, sale and trading of gold jewellery, diamond studded jewellery and silver items. It currently has nearly 100 stores in 75 cities.
"The company operates through its retail stores and there is a constant monitoring of individual store performance," the presentation said. It has changed the store format from small to large at some location, while reducing the store size and shifted to a different market in some other markets. Stores at Bengaluru and Kolkata have been closed. | the company has repaid bank debt of Rs 426 crores in the first quarter of the current fiscal. it has reduced bank liabilities from internal accruals and better realisations from inventory. the company posted 4.5 percent growth in its net profit at Rs 142 crore during the first quarter of this fiscal. it has nearly 100 stores in 75 cities. the company has changed the store format from small to large at some locations. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/market/investors-wealth-jumps-rs-6-lakh-crore-as-sensex-nifty-gain-over-6-on-tuesday/1921155/ | After two consecutive days of fall, headline indices Sensex and Nifty gained more than 6 per cent on Tuesday led by the rally index heavyweights such as RIL, HDFC Bank, Infosys and HUL. With today’s surge, investor wealth jumped Rs 6 lakh crore today’s trade. The 30-share Sensex gained 1,589 points to touch a day’s high of 29,180 while the broader Nifty50 index jumped 462 points to hit an intraday high of 8,545. The market capitalisation of the BSE-listed firms zoomed to Rs 114 lakh crore from Friday’s close of Rs 108 lakh crore. Domestic equity, money and commodity markets were closed on Monday on account of Mahavir Jayanti.
The rally in S&P BSE Sensex was mainly driven by the gains in private bank stocks, where IndusInd Bank gained 15 per cent, Axis Bank share price was up 12 per cent and shares of ICICI Bank were trading 7.5 per cent. S&P BSE private Banks index was also up 6.76 per cent. DCB Bank, Bandhan Bank and RBL Bank were among the losers on the index. Among Nifty sectoral indices, Nifty Pharma index surged 9.5 per cent led by gains in Cadila Healthcare, Cipla and Auro Pharma. Similarly, Nifty Bank index was up 7.22 per cent or 1,244 points with IndusInd Bank, Axis Bank and ICICI Bank as the top index gainers.
In an overnight trade on Wall Street, US stocks rocketed higher, with each of the major indexes rallying at least 7%, after a fall in the daily death toll in New York, fueled optimism a leveling off of the pandemic was on the horizon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 1,627.46 points, or 7.73%, to 22,679.99, the S&P 500 gained 175.03 points, or 7.03%, to 2,663.68 and the Nasdaq Composite added 540.16 points, or 7.33%, to 7,913.24. | Sensex and Nifty gained more than 6% on Tuesday led by rally index heavyweights. broader Nifty50 index jumped 462 points to hit intraday high of 8,545. domestic equity, money and commodity markets closed on monday. rally in Sensex was mainly driven by gains in private bank stocks. indusInd Bank gained 15 per cent, axis bank up 12 per cent and shares of ICICI Bank were trading 7.7 per cent. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/world-news/pakistan-inks-3-loan-deals-worth-918-million-with-world-bank-to-overcome-financial-crisis/1611182/ | Pakistan on Tuesday signed three loan agreements worth a total of USD 918 million with the World Bank, Prime Minister Imran Khan’s adviser on finance has said as the cash-strapped country tries to overcome a ballooning balance-of-payments crisis that threatens to cripple its economy.
The amount will be used to fund three projects — USD 400 million each on Pakistan Raises Revenue Programme and Higher Education Development in Pakistan and USD 118 million on Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Mobilisation and Resource Management Programme, Dawn news reported.
Also read: Pakistan foreign minister briefs Mike Pompeo about addressing FATF concerns, including curbing terror funding activities
Prime Minister Khan’s Adviser Shaikh witnessed the signing of the three agreements between Country Director of World Bank Patchamuthu Illangovan and Economic Affairs Division Secretary Noor Ahmed, the representatives of the Higher Education Commission and Government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Sheikh thanked the World Bank “for extending their continuous support to Pakistan’s government in its efforts to achieve the sustainable economic development of the country”.
Pakistan is seeking help from multiple lenders like the IMF, the World Bank and the ADB to overcome a ballooning balance of payments crisis. Last month, it reached an agreement in principle with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a three-year, USD 6 billion bailout package aimed at shoring up its finances and strengthening a slowing economy. Meanwhile, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said it is holding meetings with Pakistan on loans.
“These discussions are ongoing and details of the plans as well as the volume of ADB’s financial support, once finalised, will be contingent upon the approval of ADB management and its Board of Directors,” ADB’s Country Director for Pakistan Xiaohong Yang said. China is investing heavily in Pakistan under the USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
Launched in 2015, the CPEC is a planned network of roads, railways and energy projects linking China’s resource-rich Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region with Pakistan’s strategic Gwadar Port on the Arabian Sea. The US has serious reservations over global lenders like the IMF providing a bailout to Pakistan to pay off Chinese debts.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in the past warned that any potential IMF bailout for Pakistan should not provide funds to pay off Chinese lenders, saying “we will be watching what the IMF does… there is no rationale for IMF tax dollars and associated with that American dollars that are part of the IMF funding, for those to go to bail out Chinese bondholders or China itself”. | the amount will be used to fund three projects. the country is seeking help from multiple lenders like the IMF, the World Bank and the ADB. last month, it reached an agreement in principle with the international monetary fund for a three-year, USD 6 billion bailout package. the Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said it is holding meetings with Pakistan on loans. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/how-indian-startups-are-jumping-onto-the-work-from-home-bandwagon-5046421.html | Bhavin Turakhia, founder of Flock and cofounder of Zeta
It is hard to avoid news about the spread of Coronavirus globally. Stock markets have dropped, production and supply chains worldwide are affected, and international travel is shutting down.
In such times, keeping a level head is the first step to combating the spread of illnesses like COVID-19 and ensuring that our neighbours and co-workers are safe. The simplest option available right now is to go remote and allow employees to work from home, and many businesses worldwide—big and small—are doing just that.
Coronavirus: An opportunity for startups
While remote work hasn’t yet taken off in a big way here in India going remote is an increasingly popular choice for startups all over the globe. The Coronavirus pandemic is an opportunity for startups in India to experience the benefits of remote work. Plus, if this style of work turns out to be successful within the startup ecosystem in India, we could be looking at wider adoption of the ‘work from home’ model across larger organizations.
Today’s startups hardly ever operate on a 9 to 5 schedule, with a majority of the startup workforce consisting of millennials and ‘Gen Z’ professionals, they show an increasing preference towards workplace flexibility.
According to a survey by Shine.com, Indian millennials don’t want to work within the four walls of their offices anymore—with nearly 60% of respondents saying that maintaining good work-life balance is one of the main reasons. Additionally, a recent Flock survey of 500 professionals in the US found that 91% of workers agreed with measures like working from home to help prevent people from getting sick. And 89% were willing to work from home to help prevent the spread of illness.
In India, working from home is much less common than in the West. Indian workers have mixed reactions to this experiment. Some complain of bosses who don’t trust that their employees will actually work from home; while some are constantly distracted by family members, while others embrace the experience, enjoying improved and increased productivity; with some even reporting improved family lives.
Millions of people across the nation will get the chance to experience days without long hours of travel to their workplace, or the harsh inflexibility of not being able to stay close to home when a family member is unwell. This might be the best chance for a great reset in terms of how we work.
Some employees may be working from home for the first time, which means they will have to understand how to stay on task in a completely new environment that may not lend itself to productivity. But there are ways to deliver results from setting up a good workspace to the way you talk with your team.
As per the Flock survey, 75% of the overall respondents said their company allowed remote work in some capacity. However, analyzing responses by company size, we found that small and medium-sized businesses have not adopted remote work as much as their larger counterparts. Remote work has clearly become the norm within larger companies across India, but smaller companies currently appear less equipped and confident.
Having the right collaboration tools in place is key for startups
As much as 53% of respondents in the Flock survey mentioned that they don’t allow remote work because they do not have the proper tools to enable it. Fortunately, creating a remote work policy and implementing collaboration tools is now easier than ever. Many companies, including a few fully-remote startups, are sharing their tried-and-tested remote work policies, with secure and robust workplace collaboration tools enabling collaboration across geographies and time zones.
I’ve worked remotely—on and off— for several years now. Despite being always on the move, I am always connected with my team. I use platforms like Zoom and Flock to keep a track of my team’s tasks and projects. I have found remote working to have an extremely positive impact without hampering workplace productivity in any manner.
But are all startups prepared to accept the work from home culture in view of the growing restrictions due to the spread of Coronavirus?
Choosing an integrated platform makes the difference
For startups that are considering starting a remote work program, consider an all-in-one collaborative solution that takes care of your company’s messaging, video conferencing, screen sharing, file sharing, and productivity needs. There are many tools available in the market that focus on specific elements of remote work, like just voice calling or just video conferencing. But choosing tools for each individual functionality separately means businesses have to adopt and pay for multiple tools just to get started.
Likewise, companies struggling with tooling overload could save themselves a lot of frustration and money by consolidating their communication and collaboration tools into a single platform.
That said, Coronavirus as a catalyst for remote work isn’t sustainable. For remote work to stick around, it has to be a conscious choice. Remote work provides huge quality of life benefits and business efficiencies, but only businesses that focus on building an inclusive remote work culture will see sustained levels of performance..
As more and more people are exposed to remote work opportunities, it will become less of a perk and more of a necessity, as shown by our research below. Most businesses competing for talent will need to tailor their operating model as per the preferences of their workforce and embrace remote work.
As a startup founder / leader, all you need to do is start with a basic remote work policy and select a robust collaboration platform to help your employees do their best work, no matter where they are. | the pandemic of Coronavirus is an opportunity for startups in India to experience the benefits of remote work. if this style of work turns out to be successful within the startup ecosystem in india, we could be looking at wider adoption of the ‘work from home’ model across larger organizations. a recent survey by Shine.com found that 91% of workers agreed with measures like working from home to help prevent people from getting sick. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/sme-sector/samhita-cgf-usaid-others-launch-programme-to-provide-help-for-covid-impacted-livelihoods/articleshow/78891535.cms | MUMBAI: In a bid to restore livelihoods lost during the COVID-19 crisis, Samhita-Collective Good Foundation ( CGF ), the US Agency for International Development ( USAID ), Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF) and Omidyar Network India have collaborated to launch a $6.85 million blended finance facility called REVIVE.The financing facility, also supported by corporates such as Arvind Limited and Godrej Consumer Products Limited and foundations like Brihati Foundation powered by Claris , will provide accessible and affordable capital in the form of grants, returnable grants and loans to previously employed or self-employed workers and at-risk nano and micro enterprises to either restart and sustain their work or find alternative business opportunities. The facility is expected to reach between 60,000-100,000 workers and enterprises and will give preference to youth and women. REVIVE will also undertake upskilling activities for laid-off youth and informal sector workers.In a statement, Founder and CEO, Samhita , Priya Naik, said, “This will have a positive impact on economic activity, self-employment, and household consumption, giving families and small businesses the agency to pay their dues, buy daily business supplies and invest in protective gear and other operations to sustain and thrive.”“The United States and India have a long history of collaboration in the health and development areas, and our cooperative response to COVID-19 builds on this strong partnership. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant negative impact on the global economy, including India and its citizens. The impact on women and youth has been higher,” said Ramona El Hamzaoui, USAID/India Acting Mission Director, in a statement.Rahil Rangwala, Director, Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, added in a statement that, “COVID has displaced so many workers in the informal sector, and has had a tremendous impact on the economy. REVIVE is a powerful platform aligned with our goal to support programs that bring people back to a road to recovery and reignite the economy. “Siddharth Nautiyal, Partner, Omidyar Network India, said: “Through REVIVE, we aim to restore livelihoods with accessible and affordable capital thereby giving a much-needed impetus to small businesses and aiding economic recovery."The REVIVE Alliance will initiate partnerships with a range of stakeholders, including companies and foundations as fundraising partners, and business chambers, non-banking financial companies, social organisations and prominent sector influencers who will provide robust expertise and implementation support.Among the companies and foundations that have come onboard, Arvind Limited will support workers from the textile industry who have lost their jobs; Godrej Consumer Products Limited will support beautypreneurs; and Brihati Foundation powered by Claris will support farmers and street vendors. | the $6.85 million blended finance facility will provide access to affordable capital. it will provide grants, returnable grants and loans to previously employed or self-employed workers. the facility is expected to reach between 60,000-100,000 workers and enterprises. it will also undertake upskilling activities for laid-off youth and informal sector workers. the impact on women and youth has been higher, said the us agency. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/policy/assocham-hails-pm-modi-for-extending-lockdown-seeks-urgent-financial-help-for-industry/articleshow/75140857.cms | Samvat 2080 Opens on a Positive Note Samvat 2080 started on a steady note for investors with India’s stock benchmarks gaining over half a per cent in the special 60-minute Muhurat trading session on Sunday evening to mark the start of the traditional Hindu new year.
Insolvency Gets All Personal Now in Boost for Recoveries Supreme Court (SC) order allowing bankruptcy proceedings against personal guarantors of loans to defaulter companies will open up a new window of recovery, potentially multiplying banks’ realizations. | india's stock benchmarks gained over half a per cent in the special 60-minute Muhurat trading session on Sunday evening. the move marks the start of the traditional Hindu new year. bankruptcy proceedings against personal guarantors of loans to defaulter companies will open up a new window of recovery. a new ruling by the supreme court will open up a new window of recovery. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/science/private-sector-to-be-allowed-to-build-rockets-provide-launch-services-isro-chief-sivan/articleshow/76619366.cms | BENGALURU: India’s space agency will move all its operational satellites, rockets and applications to its commercial arm, New Space India Ltd, allowing the private sector to commercially exploit the assets it has built so far.Indian Space Research Organisation ( Isro ) chairman K Sivan said on Thursday that private firms can also independently build satellites and rockets and launch them from Indian soil.The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre ( In-Space ), a new body set up by the government, will regulate the country’s space industry, he added.On its part, Isro will focus on building technologies and undertake deep space missions and human space flights.“An open and inclusive space sector will result in accelerated growth, job creation as well as innovations and will enable the Indian space industry to be a significant player in the global space economy,” Sivan said in a webcast.India has a fleet of 15 communication satellites that provide direct-to-home, telecom and internet services; it has 13 operational remote sensing satellites for earth observation and applications such as weather and ocean monitoring as well as disaster management.It has built three generations of rockets that can carry satellites weighing as much as 6 tonnes into geostationary orbit. It is also building a small satellite launch vehicle that can carry smaller satellites into space.Besides companies such as Larson & Toubro, Godrej Aerospace, MTAR and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, which build systems for India’s space programme, entrepreneurs are also building rockets and satellites to launch on their own.“What is very positive is that the Chairman spoke about enabling private players, clarified how quickly the Department of Space is willing to act on this and also mentioned that In-Space would be both autonomous and independent,” said Srinath Ravichandran, co-founder of Agnikul Aerospace , an IIT-Madras-incubated startup that is building a rocket to hurl small satellites into space.Space entrepreneur Susmita Mohanty said India should adopt global best practices and implement space reforms effectively to ensure long-term impact.“The new reforms will need careful detailing, inclusion of global best practices, proper implementation to ensure speed, fairness and long-term impact. It will need to be bolstered with a robust funding ecosystem for the private sector, akin to the United States and Europe,” Mohanty, the chief executive of Earth2Orbit , said.In-Space, to be operational in 3-6 months, will have members from academia, government as well as industry representatives on its board and will be under the Space Commission.“This is a great step forward and can be potentially revolutionary for the sector in the years to come - as influential as when Trai (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) was set up to provide a level-playing field to non-BSNL telecom operators. That change has led to the revolution that Jio and Airtel have brought and similar changes will come in remote sensing and other fields thanks to the setting up of In-Space,” said Awais Ahmed, founder and CEO of Pixxel, a Bengaluru-based startup that is building a fleet of remote sensing satellites.According to the Isro chairman, the government is working to update the remote sensing data policy as well as the Satcom policy to include the activities of the regulator and is also working on a new navigation policy. | space agency will move all its operational satellites, rockets and applications to its commercial arm, New Space India Ltd. private firms can also independently build satellites and rockets and launch them from india. the new body, set up by the government, will regulate the country’s space industry. besides companies such as Larson & Toubro, Godrej Aerospace, MTAR and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, entrepreneurs are also building rockets and satellites to launch on their own. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/may-series-these-top-10-buys-can-offer-up-to-14-return-2559843.html | live bse live
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The Nifty ended April 27 expiry week closer to 10,700 levels, up 1.2 percent week-on-week. Given the current momentum on D-Street, the index is on track to hit 10,800-10,900 levels, experts said. “There was lot ambiguity among market participants after approaching the Nifty approached its strong resistance zone of 10,600-10,640. But, it managed to breakout post the April expiry.
Sameet Chavan, Chief Analyst - Technicals and Derivatives at Angel Broking, sees the Nifty heading towards 10,750-10,800 levels in the short-term. “Despite some terrible days in the global market, our benchmarks managed to shrug off all these developments and displayed their independence. The recent hurdle placed around 10,640 has been crossed on a closing basis and thus we may see an extension of this move towards 10,750-10,800 in days ahead. On the lower side, the immediate base seems to have shifted higher towards 10,640-10,600 (earlier hurdle becomes support) from 10,495 levels.”
Chavan advises traders to trade with a stock specific positive bias and look to lighten positions around 10,750- 10,800 levels. “One needs to keep booking timely profits and should rather shift stop losses higher at 10,640-10,600 levels.”
We have collated a list of top 10 stocks which could give up to 14% return:
Analyst: Sameet Chavan- Chief Analyst, Technicals and Derivatives at Angel Broking
Wockhardt: BUY | Target: Rs 863 | Stop loss: Rs 793 | Return: 8.8%
We remain upbeat on this stock with a near-term view. Post the January month correction, this stock slipped into a consolidation mode. Now, after three months, the stock prices burst through this congestion zone and thereby confirms a neckline breakout from the ‘Inverse Head and shoulder’ pattern.
The volumes during this price action were almost thrice of its average daily volumes, indicating strong buying interest after the base building process.
Thus, we expect the stock to extend this rally and eventually climb towards our near-term target of Rs 863. Traders can shift their stop losses to Rs 793.
Bata India: BUY | Target: Rs 857 | Stop loss: Rs 763 | Return 8%
Since the last couple of weeks, this stock has been consolidating in a small range. Last Friday, we witnessed a complete gush in the last couple of hours of the trade. The stock prices surged quite abruptly to confirm a breakout from the near term hurdle of Rs 791 on a closing basis.
This was accompanied by humongous volumes, providing credence to this move. However, due to lack of follow up buying, the stock once again slipped into a consolidation mode.
But, the overall structure still remains bullish. Hence, one can look to go long for a target of Rs 857 by following a strict stop loss below Rs 763.
MCX India: BUY | Target: Rs 857 | Stop loss: Rs 763 | Return 8%
Recently, this stock managed to give spectacular recovery after forming a strong base around the Rs 700 mark. If we combine, daily and weekly time frame charts, the stock seems to be on the verge of a breakout.
The volume activity during Friday’s surge picked up substantially, indicating some sort of buying interest around its recent hurdle. Hence, with anticipation, one can look to go long for a target of Rs 857 by following a strict stop loss below Rs 763.
Analyst: Dinesh Rohira, Founder & CEO, 5nance.com
Gravita India: BUY | Target: Rs 220 | Stop loss: Rs 187 | Return 10%
Gravita India witnessed a strong rebound in the last month after consolidating from earlier peak to take a crucial support at Rs 146 levels. Thereafter, it maintained to trade on uptrend trajectory.
Last week it made a fresh peak on its daily price chart although it couldn’t to hold the level but signaled a positive breakout from its upper band. The scrip made a 12 percent gain on a weekly basis.
The scrip formed a strong bullish candlestick pattern on its weekly price chart after forming a reversal pattern in past session.
Further, a secondary momentum indicator witnessed a revival with weekly RSI level shifting upward at 68 coupled with positive cue intact on MACD.
The support level for scrip is currently placed at Rs 177 and resistance level from the upper band at Rs 134. We have a buy recommendation for Gravita India which is currently trading at Rs 199.75
Prakash Industries: BUY | Target: Rs 237 | Stop loss: Rs 205 | Return 8%
The scrip witnessed a health consolidation from Rs 256 levels towards Rs 168 levels on its daily price chart during past session before creating a reversal trend.
The scrip took a strong support at lower band and continued to rebound on uptrend trajectory coupled with strong volume support. Further, it managed to break out from its crucial short-term EMA levels in the last session indicating a positive trend.
On the daily price chart, after closing with about 4 percent intraday gain the scrip made a decent bullish candlestick pattern. The weekly RSI level at 62 coupled with positive divergence on MACD indicates a momentum for the scrip in coming session.
The scrip has a support at 186 levels and resistance level at Rs 262. We have a buy recommendation for Prakash Industries which is currently trading at Rs 218.85.
Rallis India: SELL | Target: Rs 206 | Stop loss: Rs 228 | Return 6%
Rallis India continued to consolidate on its daily price chart despite making a decent attempt to recoup the loss but the selling pressure at higher level aided the price to breach below its crucial level placed at Rs 238. Further, during a closing session, the price got below its 20 and 50-days EMA levels indicating a negative signal.
The scrip formed a solid bearish candlestick pattern on its weekly price chart after breaching below 20-days EMA level indicating a sustained pressure.
Further, the secondary momentum indicator continued to indicate negative signal with RSI at 38 levels coupled with bearish crossover just happening on MACD line.
The scrip is facing a resistance at Rs 235 levels and support at Rs 198 levels. We have a sell recommendation for Rallis India which is currently trading at Rs 219
Analyst: Rohit Srivastava, fund manager – PMS Sharekhan by BNP Paribas
PTC India: BUY | CMP: Rs 89.70 | Stop loss: Rs 86.70 | Target: Rs 102 | Return: 14%
The daily chart of PTC India shows a ‘Three Wave’ correction after a Five Wave rise. The correction retraced nearly 78.6 percent of the rise, which proved to be a crucial support. The daily lower Bollinger Band also offered support.
As per Elliott Wave Theory, PTC India is expected to form another set of a Five Wave rise from the current level. There is a high probability that the stocks will head higher from current levels and investors can initiate fresh positions on the long side.
Piramal Enterprises: BUY | CMP: Rs 2635.80| Stop loss: Rs 2550 | Target Rs 2900 | Return: 10%
Piramal Enterprise witnessed a multi-month correction from the highs of Rs 3070 registered in June last year. The correction looks over in the last month at the low of Rs 2275. Thereon the stock seems to have embarked on a fresh rally, which can last for several months.
Thus the stock looks positive from short-term as well as medium-term perspective. It is moving up along with a rising trendline which is a positive sign for the bulls.
The recent structure shows that the stock has consolidated above the trendline and has also broken out from the narrow range in which it was consolidating on the upside.
Ceat: BUY | CMP: Rs 1559.85 | Stop loss: Rs 1508 | Target: Rs 1787
In terms of price patterns, Ceat is forming an ‘Inverted Head & Shoulders’ pattern, which is a bullish pattern. The pattern is spanning over several weeks so the implication of the pattern breakout is likely to be significant.
Currently, the stock is forming right shoulder of the pattern. Hereon, it is expected to head towards the neckline and can eventually breakout on the upside. The risk-reward ratio at this level is very attractive to take a fresh long position.
Analyst: Mazhar Mohammad, Chief Strategist – Technical Research & Trading Advisory, Chartviewindia.in
ICICI Bank: BUY | Target: Rs 315| Stop loss: Rs 271 | Return 9.3%
This counter appears to have resumed its up move after posting a short-term bottom at recent lows of Rs 275 levels. As momentum in broader markets is picking up with Bank Nifty also on the verge of a fresh breakout, this counter shall able to clear its immediate hurdle of Rs 295 with ease.
Once that happens it can head towards its initial targets of Rs 315. In anticipation of such a breakout positional traders are advised to buy into this counter for a target of Rs 315 with a stop of Rs 271.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on moneycontrol.com are their own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. | the Nifty ended April 27 expiry week closer to 10,700 levels, up 1.2 percent week-on-week. given the current momentum on D-Street, the index is on track to hit 10,800-10,900 levels. analysts say the stock is on track to climb towards our near-term target of Rs 863. a total of 69 stocks are trading at a price of Rs 850. | Positive |
http://www.financialexpress.com/market/nasdaq-ends-over-7000-for-1st-time-reflects-growing-us-economy/1000225/ | US stocks begin their new year on a strong note, with the Nasdaq closing above 7,000 mark for the first time, driven mainly by the bullish technology industry. At the closing, the technology-rich Nasdaq Composite Index had jumped 1.5 per cent to end the first session of the year at 7,006.90. According to The Wall Street Journal, it raced to 1,000 points in just eight month – a pace not seen since the height of the technology boom.
Nasdaq, which mainly focusses on technology index, jumped 28 per cent in 2017 as against the Dow Industrial average of 25 per cent and S&P 500’s 19 per cent rise, it said. Riot Blockchain, a biotech-turned-blockchain company was the biggest winner in the run-up to the Nasdaq Composite’s latest milestone, the daily said.
Large tech companies such as Apple, Google parent Alphabet and Microsoft have played a key role in it. Fox Business attributed this to rallying technology and consumer-discretionary stocks. According to the Wall Street Journal, earnings for technology companies have soared in 2017, but they have been unable to keep up with price gains.
“The tech industry and its importance in the wider economy have changed dramatically since the last boom. In the late 1990s, investors were largely betting on the promise of the internet,” it said. “Today, with the decade-old smartphone boom and advances in areas like cloud computing and artificial intelligence, technology is deeply embedded into the way people work and do business, and has transformed industries including retail and entertainment,” the daily reported. Ryan Detrick, a senior market strategist at LPL Financial, said a good start to the year is usually followed by strong yearly performance. | technology-rich Nasdaq Composite Index jumped 1.5% to end the first session of the year at 7,006.90. it raced to 1,000 points in just eight months - a pace not seen since height of technology boom. Riot Blockchain, a biotech-turned-blockchain company was the biggest winner in run-up to the Nasdaq Composite’s latest milestone. | Positive |
http://www.livemint.com/Politics/aCG8WiklJVzihm5ZAIUoZJ/Govt-nod-to-Rs5000-crore-plan-to-promote-service-industries.html | New Delhi: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government on Wednesday announced a Rs5,000 crore scheme to promote key services industries, doubled the guarantee given to lenders financing procurement of pulses and oilseeds and extended a scheme supporting non-farm self-employment by another three years.
The cabinet, at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, decided to promote 12 sectors, including information technology (IT) and IT-enabled services, tourism and hospitality, medical value travel, logistics and transport, financial, accounting and legal services and construction services so that their full growth potential is realized.
Services now account for more than half of India’s close to $2.6 trillion economy.
The idea is to increase the competitiveness of the services sector, add jobs and step up services exports.
The cabinet doubled the government guarantee for procurement of pulses and oilseeds at support prices by the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED). The guarantee to lender banks for providing credit to NAFED was raised from Rs9,500 crore to Rs19,000 crore.
As the market price of almost all pulses and oilseeds are currently below the minimum support price (MSP), the government guarantee will help in protecting farmers from resorting to distress sales, said an official statement.
Farmers have been battered by low crop prices following record harvests in 2016 and 2017. The situation is worse for farmers growing pulses and oilseeds because government procurement is not significant enough to raise wholesale prices.
The cabinet committee on economic affairs, which also met on Wednesday, decided to continue the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) for another three years to 2019-20 with an outlay of Rs5,500 crore. The extension of the scheme is expected to add 15 lakh jobs. The scheme, which is meant to create self-employment for traditional artisans and unemployed youth by way of helping to create small enterprises in the non-farm sector has so far financed 4.55 lakh micro enterprises and provided jobs to about 38 lakh persons since its inception in 2008-09, the statement said.
The cabinet decided to table in Parliament a new Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018. The bill seeks to prevent trafficking as well as to rescue and rehabilitate victims.
The cabinet also agreed to have an economic and trade cooperation deal with Vietnam and cleared a few deals with Jordan on business, customs and manpower.
Sayantan Bera and Elizabeth Roche contributed to this story.
Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more. | the cabinet decided to promote 12 sectors, including IT and IT-enabled services. the idea is to increase the competitiveness of the services sector. the cabinet also doubled the guarantee for procurement of pulses and oilseeds. the extension of the scheme is expected to add 15 lakh jobs. the cabinet also agreed to have an economic and trade cooperation deal with Vietnam. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/current/economy-politics/indian-saas-revenues-hit-35-billion-in-fy20-top-5-vendors-own-33-market-share/story/410855.html | KEY HIGHLIGHTS:
Indian SaaS landscape have 1000-plus companies and 6 unicorns
SaaS funding in India has grown at 15% CAGR over last 3 years
75% of revenues from Indian SaaS players coming from global sales
With over a thousand Software as-a-Service (SaaS) companies -- 150 among them with an annual revenue rate of over $1 million -- India is now aiming at a faster growth than the global SaaS companies. An industry study by NASSCOM with knowledge partners states that India's SaaS companies' revenue has now reached $3.5 billion in FY20, with 75 per cent of the said revenues coming from global sales.
The report 'Riding the Storm: Towards the Giant India SaaS Opportunity' says the number of SaaS companies growing in India at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 30 per cent is nearly one and a half times faster when compared to global SaaS landscape. While the Indian pure-play SaaS companies are dominating the market, the top five companies account for nearly 33 per cent of the market share. Terming the SaaS companies as one of the emerging growth drivers, Debjani Ghosh, President, NASSCOM says that as a technology industry they have barely scratched the surface when it comes to use cases that can be delivered via SaaS to benefit across sectors. "India today needs greater cross-industry collaborations, supportive government policy, and investment in deep technologies, to further the growth of the SaaS industry exponentially."
While the SaaS industry in India has been seeing an accelerated growth in the last few years largely led by increased cloud consumption and evolving Software as-a-Service model. The large demand (nearly 75 per cent) for Indian SaaS products comes from global markets. SaaS funding in India is said to have grown by 15 per cent CAGR over the last three years. With nearly 6 unicorn SaaS start-ups, the number is expected to grow higher by 2025 .
With the global addressable SaaS market expected to be around $400 billion by 2025, Indian SaaS companies have a big opportunity ahead. While the pure-play Indian SaaS industry is a fraction with revenues of around $2.5 billion, by 2022 it has the potential to grow by six times and hit revenues of $13-15 billion, says NASSCOM .
Some of the key recommendations in the report to realise this growth potential include a strong push for procurement of India SaaS products through changing procurement norms, specific incentives and linkages with Indian MSMEs, creating specialised SaaS focussed accelerators and incubators and promotion of tier-II and tier-III cities and non-metro locations to develop SaaS companies in India. The report also suggests looking at non-VC funding model requiring to grow the SaaS industry base. | a new study says india's SaaS industry is one and a half times faster than global. a total of over 1,000 companies and 6 unicorns are launching their first product. the global addressable SaaS market is expected to be around $400 billion by 2025. the top five companies account for nearly 33 per cent of the market share. | Positive |
http://www.financialexpress.com/money/top-10-mutual-funds-to-invest-in-2018-for-long-term-growth-from-sbi-blue-chip-fund-to-reliance-tax-saver-check-benefits/1011840/ | Mutual funds are the fastest-emerging and the safest investment option for the long-term creation of wealth. From longer-term perspective, it is advisable to create a portfolio of MFs using a top down approach, which includes first arriving at an optimal asset allocation based on one’s risk tolerance, and then selecting funds to match one’s risk reward investment plan. For the first-time investors who want to get exposure to the Indian equity markets, it would be advisable to invest through a Systematic Investment Plan (SIP) rather than making lump sum investments. SIP investment would ensure that even if the market corrects in the short term, the effect of rupee cost averaging will reduce the overall entry valuation of the MF portfolio as the investments would be made at regular intervals
Below is a list of mutual funds which have consistently provided superlative returns and do stand out as better investment choices. The time horizon that is recommended for these funds is between 5 and 7 years. Some of the schemes do consist of mid cap and small cap funds which are more riskier than their counterparts. However, the risk reward is attractive and they are ideal candidates for a portfolio of diversified mutual funds:
1. SBI Bluechip Fund
SBI Bluechip Fund is Five Star-rated fund, investing in blue chip companies like Infosys, Sun Pharma, Reliance Industries, Maruti Suzuki etc. The fund manager of SBI Bluechip Fund has 6 years of experience. The expense ratio of the fund is low.
2. Birla Sun Life Top 100 Fund
Birla Sun Life Top 100 Fund has invested in 73 shares. Major stock holdings of this fund are in Infosys, HDFC bank, Larsen & Toubro and ICICI bank. All these blue chip stocks are performing very well and are expected to perform well in the future.
3. Aditya Birla Sun Life Frontline Equity
This large cap fund is one of the most consistent performers. The portfolio of the fund is heavyweight on the financial sector and it has helped it in getting good returns.
4. Reliance Tax Saver Fund
Reliance Tax Saver Fund is an open ended ELSS. The fund seeks to maintain balance between large-cap and mid-cap companies. This fund looks to invest in companies with high growth potential over the next 2 to 3 years. There’s also an allocation to the MNCs and high conviction mid-cap companies.
5. HDFC Balanced Fund
This fund remains a long-term performer in the category. HDFC Balanced Fund remains a good consistent performer in the category, especially for the first time investors.
6. ICICI Prudential Balanced Fund
This is one of the best diversified funds. This fund beats all its peers and has provided 18% annualized returns in the last 5 years compared to the balanced fund category in the similar period.
7. SBI Magnum Multicap Fund
Among the multicap schemes, SBI Magnum Multicap has distinguished itself as a steady performer with a reasonably good performance record.
8. Franklin India Smaller Companies
Small cap funds tend to be highly volatile, but this fund has managed to have standard deviation lower than the category by 2% in both 3 years and 5 years. It invests in low capital intensive business having high growth potential.
9. Mirae Asset Emerging Bluechip Fund
This fund has beaten all its peers and provided 31% annualized returns in 5 years. This midcap fund has performed in various market cycles, making this as a unique fund.
10. L&T Emerging Businesses Fund
The fund invests in emerging businesses, typically in early stages of development, which have the potential to become future giants and deliver higher alpha.
(By Rahul Agarwal, Director, Wealth Discovery. Although due care has been exercised by the writer while selecting these funds, readers are advised to consult their financial adviser before investing in any of these funds) | mutual funds are the fastest-emerging and the safest investment option for the long-term creation of wealth. from longer-term perspective, it is advisable to create a portfolio of MFs using a top down approach. for the first-time investors who want to get exposure to the Indian equity markets, it would be advisable to invest through a systematic investment plan (SIP) | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/why-hpcl-is-a-long-term-stock-pick-despite-near-8x-rise-in-5-years-2844291.html | live bse live
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Sumeet Rohra
Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd is a jewel in the Indian equity markets with strong earnings growth, a proven track record, stable earnings, quality management, high earnings and dividend yield, and sovereign status. It trades at low single digit PE multiples.
HPCL today is a Fortune 500 company – a company whose earnings have grown from INR 1091 crores in FY14 to Rs 7,250 crore in FY18.
Consequently, this company has reported not only exemplary performance but also rewarded shareholders with liberal bonuses and consistent dividend pay-outs.
Key Performance and Financial Trends
A look inside HPCL helps discover the value in this company.
Current infrastructure: HPCL’s supply infrastructure comprises 41 terminals, 68 depots, 48 LPG plants, 41 ASFs, 6 lube blending plants, the second largest Pipeline network of 3370 kms, largest lube refinery accounting for 40% of India total lube production, and the second highest bitumen production in the country.
Its refining capacity consists of two plants in Mumbai and Vishakhapatnam with capacity of 7.5 MMTPA and Lubes 428 TMTPA and 8.3 MMTPA refinery respectively taking total refining to 15.8 MMTPA. A HMEL, a joint venture Mittal Energy, gives HPCL access to another 11.25 MMTPA.
In addition, HPCL has total of 18 joint ventures and subsidiaries in refining, petrochemicals, marketing infrastructure, emulsions and natural gas, 9 cross country product pipelines, 7 E&P Blocks operating through M/s Prize Petroleum a wholly owned subsidiary. The company has sales of 36.9 MMT through various products such as Petrol, Diesel, LPG, Lubes, Aviation, Natural Gas, Bitumen.
Capacity expansion plans: After its acquisition by ONGC, HPCL is evaluating MRPL’s refining assets.Today, HPCL has market sales off 36.9 MMT but refining of 27.2 MMT inculding (Bhatinda JV ). If MRPL were to merge with HPCL, its refining assets could soar to 42 MMT. Another strategy HPCL has adopted to augment its capacity includes upgrading its Mumbai and Vizag refineries.
By March 2020, it will add 8.7 MMT of capacity taking the total capacity to 36 MMT (including Bhatinda). If MRPL were to come in then total refinning capacity would be 51 MMT making it the second largest refiner in the public sector after Indian Oil Corporation. This would be an opportune time as January 2020 the IMO regulation would come into force significantly improving the refinning cycle.
This additional capacity will add to HPCL earnings sharply as exisiting gross refining margins will also move up to double digits, e.g. similar to the Bhatinda plant. Since HPCL markets more products than it refines, the company buys residual products from other companies. Once MRPL gets merged into HPCL and Mumbai and Visakhapatnam have upgraded their capacity they will be significant cost synergies and ready product availability.
Retail and channel footprint: HPCL has an excellent marketing network justifying its business to consumer investment case.
Unwarranted Concerns
Electric Vehicles (EV): India today sells about 25 million vehicles in total. Total electric vehicle sales in India were about 25, 000 units at the end of 2016–17 . Of the total EVs sold nearly 92 percent were two-wheelers, while electric cars and four wheelers accounted for less than eight percent of total sales according to Society of Manufactures of the Electric Vehicles. Most recently, Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) has scrapped its second tender for procuring 10,000 electric cars. Even if EV sales across categories touch 500,000 in 5 years, this would not constitute even two percent of auto sales today. Looking ahead, auto sales are expected to increase by eight percent to 10 percent annually for the next few years. In this scenario, even if EV sales were to take off, the percentage share of EVs in the total pie would be barely one percent to two percent. This would still ensure strong growth for the Indian oil marketing companies.
Oil prices: Oil prices today are a pass through hence higher oil or lower does not hurt core profiability (adjusting for inventory gains or inventory losses).
Election Year: Petrol was deregulated by the UPA and diesel by NDA governments. Hence both the governments have been reformists and are believed to be so in future. Marketing margins have only risen year on year. So looking at margins on daily or weekly intervals is unwarranted as the company has an integrated marketing management system in place. Further petrol and diesel account for only 25 to 30% of profit contributors .
LPG/Kerosene: Any underrecovery of the two products is clearly on the GOI balance sheet as LPG is via DBTL (The Direct Benefit Transfer of LPG DBTL or PAHAL (Pratyaksh Hanstantrit Labh) scheme was earlier launched on June 1, 2013 and finally covered 291 districts. It requires the consumer to mandatorily have an Aadhaar number for availing LPG Subsidy that has helped significantly helped reduced leakages. Kerosene under recovery is adequately compensated via subsidy payout to the company.
Iran oil crisis: HPCL buys 109 grades from across 15 countries, and is not alone dependant on Iran (sanction fear) or any particular country.
Capex: HPCL generated INR 11,037.21 crores cash from operating activities in FY18 so any increase in capex will not take debt to equity significantly higher from existing levels. Planned capex will only contribute to the quality of earnings. Further HPCL plans to automate all its 15,062 Fuel retail stations by December 2018.
To summarise, HPCL has a robust business model, sound management team, stong earnings growth (6x growth in PAT), good dividend payout (30 percent to 40 percent payout), high earnings yield (15 percent ), low P/E (6), good ROE (30.98) and fairly low PB ratio (1.74), and sound future growth strategy, all of which point to the value on offer for investors.
Investors need not be bothered about the perceived negativity, as HPCL is a Fortune 500 company well poised for good growth and creation of shareholder wealth. HPCL has always traded at PE multiples of 11 to 12 when the petroluem sector was regulated. However, now post deregulation the stock trades at a price off INR 293 discounting its reported FY18 EPS of INR 47.4 by 6.18 times.
HPCL being a predominately consumer play deserves a significantly higher PE multiple than 6 where consumer retail plays or consumption plays trade at upwards of 40 PE. The three oil marketing companies are adding 25000 retail outlets to expand their total coverage to 80,000 over the next 3 to 5 years. HPCL itself is adding 6000 outlets taking it to 21000 retail outlets and likely to bolster its share of 23 percent to 25 percent. The strong moat which these companies enjoy is irreplaceable and they deserve a high premium. HPCL trades around its plant and machinery value which is massive discount to its fair value.
In essence, HPCL is one of the best consumption plays in the country as not only every sector is dependant on oil but growth in any industry like aviation, auto, retail, mining, transportation or any economic acitivity will translate into higher petrol, diesel sales benefiting all players like HPCL , BPCL , IOCL who together account for 88 percent of the market. The wealth creating potential of these companies is significant as seen in the past.
Sumeet Rohra is a part of Smartsun Capital Pte. Ltd.
Disclaimer: The views of the author are personal and do not constitute a buy or sell.
Disclosure: The author may own shares of the company discussed. | the company has strong earnings growth, a proven track record, stable earnings, quality management, high earnings and dividend yield, and sovereign status. it has reported exemplary performance but also rewarded shareholders with liberal bonuses and consistent dividend pay-outs. it has the second largest Pipeline network of 3370 kms, largest lube refinery accounting for 40% of India total lube production. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/sme/ficci-steps-up-support-to-startups-to-create-vibrant-economy-offers-access-to-mentoring-funding-more/2096032/ | Industry body FICCI on Thursday stepped up its support towards the Indian startup ecosystem with a new membership programme to enable mentoring, access to funding, policy advocacy with the government, and more. The membership is being offered free of cost to startups till December 31, 2020. “Startups are immensely essential to the growth of a nation’s economy. FICCI Start-ups is envisioned to help young Indian entrepreneurs to create a vibrant economy. This is the time to say Silicon Valley here we come,” said Dr Sangita Reddy, President, FICCI during a webinar to launch the programme. The Indian startup ecosystem is currently the third-largest following the US and China with 21 unicorns.
The overall benefits of the programme would include connecting startups to the corporate members of FICCI, mentorship by industry experts, access to not just angel network Indian Angel Network but also the upcoming FICCI-IAN social venture fund, FICCI innovation and startup programmes, exhibitions, delegations, and conferences at special costs. The programme would also enable startups to connect with the global investor community. Startups taking membership in the coming three months would be entitled to these benefits for free for the coming one year, according to Dr Reddy.
Also read: Covid fails to dampen investors’ spirits as Q3 startup funding jumps 200% from year ago,193% from Q1
“We are currently implementing 14+ national and global programs through PPP to encourage and enable startups to grow and creating joint ventures of startups between India and countries in Africa and Latin America and more recently in Russia,” said Dilip Chenoy, Secretary-General, FICCI. The industry body’s startup committee includes members such as IAN co-founders Saurabh Srivastava and Padmaja Ruparel, Ideaspring Capital’s MD & Founder Naganand Doraswamy and more.
“Having supported 1000+ startups/innovators till date with over Rs 125 crores, FICCI has been an active player in the startup ecosystem. Start-up enterprises supported by FICCI have been able to generate 140,000+ jobs and leverage over five times from external market sources. Over 100 companies have been provided access to global markets across US, South Asia and Africa,” FICCI said in a statement. | the membership is being offered free of cost to startups till December 31, 2020. the Indian startup ecosystem is currently the third-largest following the us and china with 21 unicorns. the overall benefits of the programme would include connecting startups to the corporate members of FICCI. the startup committee includes members such as IAN co-founders Saurabh Srivastava and Padmaja Ruparel. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/technology/news/corning-unveils-next-generation-gorilla-glass---victus/story/410899.html | US-headquartered Corning, a leading name in the glass protection, has unveiled the next standard mobile glass protection - Victus. Used by all major smartphones OEM across the world, and addressing consumer demand for improved durability, the new Gorilla Glass Victus has significantly improved drop and scratch performance over the previous generation Gorilla Glass 6. Devices with Victus will be available in the second half of 2020, whereas Samsung will be the first customer to adopt Gorilla Glass Victus in the near future.
According to the company, in the lab tests, Gorilla Glass Victus achieved drop performance up to 2 meters when dropped onto hard, rough surfaces. It also surpassed Corning's own Gorilla Glass 6 with up to a 2X improvement in scratch resistance, which was used in all flagships of late 2019 and early 2020. Corning claims that the scratch resistance of Gorilla Glass Victus is up to 4X better than competitive aluminosilicate glasses.
Corning has analysed feedback from more than 90,000 consumers indicating the importance of drop and scratch performance has nearly doubled in seven years. In the top three largest smartphone markets in the world - China, India, and the United States - durability is one of the most important purchase considerations for smartphones, second only to the device brand. When tested against features such as screen size, camera quality, and device thinness, durability was twice as important, and consumers were willing to pay a premium for improved durability.
"Dropped phones can result in broken phones, but as we developed better glasses, phones survived more drops but also showed more visible scratches, which can impact the usability of devices. Instead of our historic approach of asking our technologists to focus on a single goal - making the glass better for either drop or scratch - we asked them to focus on improving both drop and scratch, and they delivered with Gorilla Glass Victus. Corning's extensive consumer research has shown that improved drop and scratch performance are key components of consumer purchasing decisions," said John Bayne, senior vice president and general manager, Mobile Consumer Electronics, Corning.
Built on more than a decade-long legacy of delivering tough glasses for smartphones, laptops, tablets, and wearables, Gorilla Glass Victus provides consumers and OEMs with significantly better drop and scratch performance compared to competitive aluminosilicate glasses from other manufacturers.
Over the last decade, Gorilla Glass has been designed into more than 8 billion devices by more than 45 major brands. | the new gorilla glass protection is called the gorilla glass Victus. it is used by all major smartphones OEMs across the world. the new glass will be available in the second half of 2020. the company claims that the scratch resistance of the glass is 4X better than competitive aluminosilicate glasses. the company has analysed feedback from more than 90,000 consumers. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/planning-to-invest-rs-10-lakh-in-market-post-budget-rbi-policy-heres-how-to-allocate-your-capital-3508291.html | After a muted close to 2018 where both Sensex and Nifty gave a low single-digit returns, most investors kept their investments on hold and awaited clarity as to what the government will do in the Interim Budget in terms of policies, and monetary policy stance from the Reserve Bank of India.
Now, with both events out of the way, investors who have been waiting on the sidelines can look at investing their capital in either lump sum or in a staggered manner in equity markets.
The message from Interim Budget and Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is very clear — the government is looking at growth and the sectors which are likely to benefit the most are financials, consumption, IT and energy.
The Interim-Budget 2019 was largely focused on improving the livelihood of the rural population through various social spending schemes and also of the middle-class population – which means more money in the hands of people.
Also, the downward revision of 60-80 bps to the MPC’s 1HFY20 inflation projections and the opening up of the output gap have reignited the possibility of multiple rate cuts going into 2019, suggest experts.
Global brokerage firms such as HSBC & Nomura see another rate cut by the central bank in April by 25 bps and possibly another 25 bps before December 2019.
Even though most analysts have warned that transmission of rates will be a key challenge but even the slightest cut in lending rates could see a major boost in consumption, consumer durable, auto etc.
The focus is now on the Lok Sabha elections. Being an election year, markets are likely to remain volatile which makes it the right time to invest. The big money can be made if you get the sectoral allocation right.
“Perceived risk in the markets and actual risk normally move inversely. Which essentially implies that when people think that it is very risky to invest or an asset class has not performed for some time the performing asset class tends to get all the attention and recommendations to invest. Actually, the contrarian investor makes more money,” Sandip Sabharwal, asksandipsabharwal.com told Moneycontrol.
“The markets are in a mid-cycle correction in terms of the broader markets and this is not the end of the bull markets. The key is to buy the right kind of stocks and hold on to them to ride out the cycle. The interest rate cycle will not be very steep the way things are placed and big fears on very high rates due to an inflationary spiral are unlikely to play out,” he said.
We have collated views from various experts on how one can invest a capital of Rs 10,00,000 in various sectors. (Assuming investor is in the age bracket of 30-40 years)
Analyst: Sandip Sabharwal, asksandipsabharwal.com
We have to take into account the sectors that will do well in the immediate term, and those which will do well in the medium term and finally long term. As such the allocation should be as follows:
Analyst: Rahul Jain, EVP, Edelweiss Wealth Management
Going by the rule of asset allocation and assuming the investor is willing to take the risk, he may divide the investment amount as follows:
I would suggest out of Rs 10,00,000, he can invest Rs 7,00,000 in equity (stocks / mutual funds) to provide higher growth for wealth creation, and the rest Rs 3,00,000 in debt instruments.
a) 50% can be allocated to large-cap
b) 30% to mid-caps
c) 20% to small caps
Analyst: Ritesh Ashar, CSO, KIFS Trade Capital
The Interim Budget looks quite impressive as it has covered almost all the aspects in terms of economic growth story, benefits to the farmers who are the backbone of the economy and also the benefits given keeping in mind the middle class of the country which counts to the maximum population of the economy. More focus should be on consumption and the auto sector.
Analyst: Dinesh Rohira, CEO and Founder, 5nance.com
As we expect equity market to remain volatile ahead of general elections coupled with fragile global outlook led by trade truce between US and China which further adds to volatility in the domestic market, it is advisable to remain cautious and avoid going overweight on equity construct. Nevertheless, keeping a long-term view of at least more than 3 years, we expect the consumption-driven sector to outperform market headlines.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment expert on moneycontrol.com are his own and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. | investors who have been waiting on the sidelines can look at investing their capital in either lump sum or in a staggered manner in equity markets. the message from the interim-budget is very clear — the government is looking at growth and the sectors which are likely to benefit the most are financials, consumption, IT and energy. the focus is now on the Lok Sabha elections. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/global-brokerage-view-11-rally-possible-in-maruti-stock-titan-downgraded-to-underperform-4609271.html | Indian market is trading in range after the recent surge that pushed the Sensex to a record high of 40,483.
The index is still holding above 40,000 though weighed down by muted global cues, but the Nifty slipped below its crucial support at 11,900.
The hopes of a trade deal have fizzled out for now and with no big triggers lined up, investors should stay cautious in the near-term. The recent rally was led by good Q2 results and in expectation of more reforms.
“Q2 provided a hope that H2 will add more colour to earnings growth, which has been dull in the last five quarters. At the same time, expectation also build-up about likely government measure to provide more stimulus to the economy and equity market with changes in tax structure like income tax, LTCG & DDT,” Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services, told Moneycontrol.
“No big event is expected next week other than Q2 results. The market has done well during the recent times, cautious may be required in the short-term.”
We have collated views and recommendations from various global brokerage firms on stocks post- September quarter results or general news flow:
Maruti Suzuki: Overweight| Target Rs 8,205
Morgan Stanley maintained its overweight rating on Maruti Suzuki with a target price of Rs 8,205, which translates to an upside of 11 percent from closing price of Rs 7,385 on November 5.
Suzuki's guidance tends to be lower than Maruti’s guidance. For FY17/18/19, Suzuki guided for 7%, 8% & 6% while Maruti saw double-digit growth, said the note. Going forward, with BS-VI change, volumes could get disrupted in the coming months.
There could be downside risks to estimates but would buy the stock if it corrects on weak Nov/Dec data as sales are at a multi-year low.
Titan Company: Downgrade to Sell| Target cut to Rs 1,025 from Rs 1,350 earlier
CLSA downgraded Titan Company to sell from underperform post- September quarter results and reduced its target price to Rs 1,025 from Rs 1,350 .
The September quarter was a disappointment on almost all fronts. The global investment bank reduced EPS forecasts to 12-16 percent.
The company's Q2FY20 profit grew 1.8 percent at Rs 320.2 crore on the back of subdued growth in the jewellery business, which contributes 80 percent to revenue. | the recent rally was led by good Q2 results and in expectation of more reforms. the recent rally was led by good. Q2 results and in expectation of more reforms. the recent rally was. led by a hope that. h2 will add more colour to earnings growth. a 'big event is expected next week other than Q2 results' | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/microsoft-unveils-investment-to-make-greece-a-regional-hub-for-cloud-services-5924241.html | Microsoft Corp. will invest in cloud services infrastructure in Greece, a boon to the country's economy that has been weakened by a decade-long debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic, senior executives of the technology giant said on Monday.
"We are investing today in research and technology in Greece," Microsoft President Brad Smith said.
"There will be benefits for Greece given our commitment to training for thousands of people."
Greek Prime Minister said the data centre investment will bring financial benefits of 1.0 billion euros to the country in the long term. | Microsoft will invest in cloud services infrastructure in Greece. the investment will bring financial benefits of 1.0 billion euros to the country. the country has been weakened by a decade-long debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic. the country has been weakened by the debt crisis and the coronavirus pandemic... the data centre investment will bring financial benefits of 1.0 billion euros to the country in the long term. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/economy/heres-what-this-australian-university-plans-to-double-indian-farmers-incomes-by-2022/1401853/ | An Australian university is planning to invest AUD 5 million as a part of a collaboration with agricultural universities across India, to leverage research and innovations that may help Indian farmers double their income by 2022, varsity officials said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has pledged to double the income of farmers of India over the next five years, said Western Sydney University (WSU) Vice Chancellor Barney Glover. However, he noted that achieving this goal will require innovation and development, as well as grassroot problem solving for farmers. Australia’s WSU has forged a partnership with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and thirteen state agricultural universities as part of a new initiative designed to combat global food security issues presented by climate change.
The university will invest AUD 5 million to leverage new research and developments, which is expected to make a significant contribution towards doubling farmers’ income over the long term. The research will focus on the areas of protected cropping and related aspects of horticulture and agriculture, as well as collaborative teaching and learning. “India and Australia share some challenges in building a protected cropping industry — so we will have similar research questions,” WSU Vice Chancellor Barney Glover told PTI in an interview here. The two countries share similar climates. We have monsoonal areas, very arid areas — the challenges of broad agriculture are similar in many ways, Glover said.
However, Glover points out that India has an added complexity. “Ninety nine per cent of Indian farmers have less than five hectares of land,” he said. “Work is going on in Pune to identify the range of recommendations to double the income of the small farmers particularly. It is those with small holdings — less than a hectare — that are struggling to earn a living,” he added. “To help the farming community diversify their revenue, WSU is working with ICAR on a bee-keeping project that involves women.
“Bees are very important to the environment, to pollination, for crops and biodiversity of the planet. There are ways to develop an economic base from bee-keeping,” Glover said. Certain varieties of bees are crucial to protected cropping — as pollination inside the greenhouse is challenging. Currently, both India and Australia uses hand pollination, an expensive and time consuming process, Glover said. “Touching on bee-keeping is one element of bringing a diversification of revenue into the community. By introducing more crops, and adding livestock small farmers can better manage the volatility in the climate and market,” he said.
With ICAR and the state universities across the country, WSU will work to upskill industry and train early career academics through joint research training programs in horticulture and agriculture. “Collaborative research between ICAR and WSU will bring together researchers, academics and students from partnering institutions and provide them with a platform to benefit from mutual expertise,” said Trilochan Mohapatra, Director General of ICAR. The network includes top state agricultural universities of Haryana, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Kashmir, West Bengal, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu ,and Kerala.
According to Glover, support of local agricultural institutes is essential in helping farmers adopt new methods and approaches to farming. “The students in these universities often come from families involved in agriculture. It provides an opportunity to influence the families to adopt successful agricultural strategies,” Glover said. The collaboration will equip students of various academic backgrounds to bring about new innovations in the field of agriculture and crop protection. | western Sydney university will invest AUD 5 million to leverage new research. the research will focus on protected cropping and related aspects of horticulture and agriculture. the university will also leverage collaborative teaching and learning. the two countries share similar climates. achieving this goal will require innovation and development. a new initiative designed to combat global food security issues presented by climate change. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/etmarkets-podcast/market-watch-whats-fuelling-rally-in-sugar-stocks/podcast/77892277.cms | Transcript
Welcome to ETMarkets Watch, the show about stocks, market trends and money-making ideas. I am Atul P. M and here are the top headlines at this hour.
· Mobius sees signs of dotcom bubble in tech rally
· Happiest Minds IPO to kick off on Sept 7
· Vodafone Idea board to weigh fund raising on Sept 4
· Richest petrostate Kuwait is running out of cash
· Credai seeks 6-month moratorium extension
· Australia in recession for 1st time in 28 years
Let’s start with what really happened in the market today.
Last hour buying lifted domestic equity indices on Wednesday as strong factory output data for the US and India lifted sentiment. Extending their winning stream into a second session, Sensex rose 185 points to 39,086, while Nifty gained 65 points to 11,535.
RIL, Infosys, M&M, HDFC Bank and TCS all ended in the green, while HDFC, HUL, Asian Paints and Bajaj Auto slashed some of the gains.
Midcaps and smallcaps did better than their largecap peers. With 1.80 per cent gain, BSE Energy index emerged a top sectoral gainer on BSE. Industrials, Power, Metals, Telecom and Teck indices advanced over 1 per cent.
In the broader market, Dhampure Speciality Sugars, Simbhaoli Sugars and Piccadily Sugar rallied up to 5 per cent. IIFL, Bajaj Auto and Suprajit each declined over 5 per cent.
So, why select sugar stocks hogged limelight today? We caught up with Mayuresh Joshi of William O'Neil India to try and understand the market undercurrent.
Welcome to the show, Mr Joshi
Q. What factors pulled the market higher in last hour?
Q. Why are sugar stocks buzzing on D-Street?
Q. What should be the right asset allocation now?
On technical charts, Nifty50 formed a small bullish candle on the daily chart. This formation, following Tuesday’s indecisive Doji candle suggests the index has entered a consolidation phase.
We have with us Amit Trivedi of Yes Securities to do the chart reading.
Q. Are technical charts suggesting consolidation ahead?
Q. What is your reading from the F&O data?
Q. Which sectors are looking attractive now?
Globally, other Asian markets ended mixed. European markets traded higher in early deals. US stock futures rose as investors anticipated positive jobs reports later in the day.
That’s all for now. Do check out ETMarkets.com for all the news, market analysis, investment strategies and dozens of stock recommendations. Enjoy your evening. Bye! | Sensex rose 185 points to 39,086, while Nifty gained 65 points to 11,535. broader market rallied up to 5 per cent.'sweetest petrostate' IPO to kick off on sept 7. 'credai seeks 6-month moratorium extension''suprajit' to close with 5% stake. | Positive |
https://www.livemint.com/Companies/3wRpbtPeblK3zEHOzZGwVL/Life-lessons-from-Indias-science-startups.html | Bengaluru: Popular wisdom has it that India has always had an abundance of trained talent but has been a laggard nation when it comes to product innovation. This is especially true with innovation that is based on science and technology. We have largely been an importer of new and innovative products and solutions, and have, at best, been only somewhat successful in creating cheaper substitutes of products that were invented outside the country, through reverse engineering an innovative drug or product for the local market.
The basics of economics tell us that it takes labour, capital, and access to efficient markets for a business to innovate new products. While talent has never been in short supply, India has lacked the capital allocation as well as the soft infrastructure for efficient markets that are required for innovation to germinate and thrive. It’s no surprise then that a fair number of our talented scientists and technologists look to emigrate so that they can work in environments that provide both sufficient capital and the necessary market infrastructure for innovation. Indian immigrants in countries like the US have been large contributors to the scientific and technological innovations that impact the world today.
Thanks to innovations in telecommunications technology, Indians can now have their work brought to them rather than having to travel to the work. This has in large part contributed to the boom in Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Management (BPM) outsourcing that we have witnessed over the last two decades. The capital and the market infrastructure still lie abroad; all that we have been able to do is to export the skills of our labour force without having each member of the workforce board an airplane. IT and BPM services exported from India over the last 25 years have now grown to a staggering $200Bn per year.
This labour export has declined in its rate of growth over the last few years, mainly due to restrictive trade practices around the world and due to the automation of many IT and BPM services which now do not need human intervention. This shift has forced Indian IT services companies to embark on a journey to build (or buy) technology products to continue to stay relevant in the world economy. Their progress has at best been slow and unsteady. While there are some select examples of successful software products made in India, largely in the core banking and finance world, these remain few and far between.
Today’s market forces that create disproportionate economic growth and value have shifted to deep scientific and technological innovations. Such a shift is evident in the companies that make it to the top of the list by market capitalization in the world today. The storied product innovation at Apple Inc has allowed it to cross $1 trillion in market capitalization. Alphabet (Google’s parent company), Amazon and Microsoft have all relied on Artificial Intelligence, Data Mining, and Cloud Services in order to stay relevant and highly valued. These companies at the top are giant tech companies—many of them just about 20 years old. Meanwhile, as these innovators have made this trek to the top, a long-standing industrial giant like General Electric has recently vacated its spot in the Dow Jones Index and is struggling to stay afloat.
I is for innovation
Our romantic view of technological or scientific innovation shows a Bill Gates or a Steve Jobs or indeed a Steven Hawking toiling away in a garage in the Bay Area or in a motorized wheelchair at an English university. This view of a sudden light bulb of inspiration going off in an inventor’s head is puerile. We have billions of smartphones in use today, but they aren’t in our hands because Jobs toiled upwards through the night while his companions slept. It took many other researchers and product development specialists, government support for research and development—and, importantly, private sector support for cutting edge technology with investors willing to stake their money to produce the marvel of a miniature computer that many of us hold in our hands today.
And, let us not forget that continued incremental advances are needed in order to produce breakthrough technologies. Today’s smartphone is almost unrecognizable when compared to the clunky miniature ones that came out in the early years.
A further nuance in the world of scientific and technological innovation is the stark difference in the types of problems scientists are trying to solve. Some of their work falls in the realm of the “Exact Sciences" which includes innovation in such disciplines as mechanics, fluid dynamics, optics, and deep learning and artificial intelligence technologies. The other work falls in the realm of the “Life Sciences" or “Bio Sciences" which includes innovations in disciplines such as bio-chemistry, cellular biology, drug discovery and the like.
This nuance was made patent by Dr. C.V. Natraj, until recently a senior research scientist at Unilever and now a member of the Society of Innovation and Development (SID) at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). Dr. Natraj made the point by categorizing these disciplines into two different categories of innovation—one the complex, and second, the complicated. A complex innovation is a breakthrough in a process where a given set of inputs do not produce a predictable output. The human body is such a complex process. By contrast, a complicated innovation is one that provides a breakthrough where a set of inputs can produce a predictable output. An example of a complicated mechanism is a motor car, a spaceship, or an MRI machine, whereas a complex innovation is more likely to spawn a new drug or bio-chemical breakthrough.
Risk and return
In a recent letter to shareholders, Jeff Bezos talks of the role of a corporation in taking risks in order to invent and innovate. In his letter he says “we are the best place in the world to fail (we have plenty of practice!), and failure and invention are inseparable twins."
China saw this massive return yielding innovation boom coming. China, the world’s top manufacturing outsourcing destination, once wanted to compete with India to become the world’s top outsourced services nation. It has jettisoned this quest and has focused its efforts towards deep innovation instead of trying to catch up with India on the global IT services industry.
It would seem then, that the basics behind creating an economy based on scientific and technological innovation requires four primary inputs, all working in concert with one another:
■ The talent (which India has aplenty)
■ Support from the government in creating both the soft and hard infrastructure in order to facilitate an innovative economy (India’s government is now getting a lot more active)
■ Support from corporations
■ Support from finance, the life-blood of risk taking
So, where is India today and what lies ahead?
The India story
India has long ranked low when it comes to original research and innovations that are game-changing in nature. It produces only a quarter of the research papers that China (now ranked second after the US) produces. In a count of highly cited research papers between 2012-2016, India had 989, US 15,000 and China 7,213.
But the number of citations is only one isolated metric when it comes to understanding the impact that research can have. In 2016-17, just one US company (Qualcomm Inc) filed 1,840 patent applications; more than twice the total applications filed by the top laboratories in India (50 labs under the Defence Research and Development Organization, 40 labs of Indian Institute of Science, 23 Indian Institutes of Technology and 6 research facilities under the Indian Space Research Organization).
The Indian government has woken up to this fact and in recent years, has supported fast growth in the science and technology startup ecosystem by setting up several incubators and accelerators. High quality talent tries its hand at entrepreneurship and there is generous financial support from the government for the commercialization of scientific research.
India now ranks third among global startup ecosystems with more than 5,000 startups with over 1,000 new additions in 2017 alone. And it is projected to have 10,000+ startups by 2020. Meanwhile, there is a high level of venture capital activity in sectors outside pure technological or scientific innovation. Venture funding is now a crowded space, and at last count, over 450 distinct Alternate Investment Funds (or AIFs) have been registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). These firms have raised committed capital of ₹ 1.65 trillion as of 31 March 2018 and have deployed ₹ 61,400 crore from this corpus. Unfortunately, however, very few of these AIFs focus on deep scientific or technological research. Most have been set up to pursue consumer internet, e-commerce, aggregation plays and consumer-services oriented business models.
However, recent analyses indicate that startups focused on areas that are directly linked to scientific and technological innovation are on the uptick. For instance, over 1,000 ventures were set up between 2012-16 just in the biotech sector. The sector has created more than 3,000 entrepreneurs, one-third of whom are women. The health-tech sector has seen capital deployment grow from $62 million in 2010 to as much as $333 million in 2017.
Times are changing
There has never been a more exciting time for India’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) and deep tech startup ecosystem. The AI industry in India is currently estimated to be $180 million in revenues with about 30,000 AI professionals in India. Startups are also playing a key role in transforming agriculture, which still accounts for at least half of India’s workforce, but only about 13% of the GDP. New fronts are opening up in terms of precision farming, hydroponics and the usage of drones.
Despite this growth, save some small exceptions, corporations have yet to truly support the country’s research and innovation bases. There is little sizable investment in research and development, and very few strategic buys where an Indian company buys out a firm solely for its patents and Intellectual Property (IP). Neither is there a concerted effort by Indian industrial houses to truly support research at Indian academic institutions, or to fund startups that may one day greatly contribute to their bottom line. This is made starkly evident by the fact that the people who run incubators have to go after corporations to access their “Corporate Social Responsibility" or CSR monies rather than their investment monies.
Ask CS Murali, chairman of SID at IISc, which currently incubates about 22 startups. SID is now already working on a plan to open a research park at its Bengaluru campus in the next three years that will scale up its current incubation capacity tenfold. All of these startups qualify as deep science/tech given the cutting-edge patentable solutions they are creating. SID also adds a criterion that impacts a startup firm’s selection into the incubator—the firm should have potential for social impact. For example, one of SID’s startups, Open Water, converts any contaminated water (not just tap water) into potable water using a novel technological process that does not rely on filters and membranes or reverse osmosis, as most of today’s available solutions do.
We have a responsibility to add to the scientific and technology eco-system that the government is trying to create. It is time that private industry and money in the hands of venture capitalists and private equity funds stepped up to the plate. Their participation is sorely needed for India to join the leaders in the post-industrial world. We risk getting left behind if they don’t. As a wag once said, “there has never been a time of greater promise or peril."
*****
Spectrum of tech startups: healthcare to space tech
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■Pathshodh: Originated from SID at IISc, Bangalore, PathShodh has developed a novel, miniaturized biosensor device that monitors diabetes and helps in early detection of chronic kidney diseases. This is a venture that has leveraged government grants for its progress.
■Vyome Biosciences: One of the few companies in the bio sciences space that has raised rounds of venture capital funding. It has emerged as one of the promising biotechnology startups, backed by an adroit clinical expert team.
■Bellatrix Aerospace: This SID (IISc) incubated company is working on advanced satellite propulsion systems. The firm fosters technologies in electric propulsion, new generation propellants and propellant chemistry, including the use of water as a fuel.
■Tonbo imaging: This company builds unique imaging technology that allows users to interpret the environment around them. Its multi-sensor imaging products/systems are useful for military, security, transportation safety and industrial inspection applications.
Siddharth Pai and Dinesh Goel are partners at Siana Capital, a venture fund management company focused on deep science and tech in India.
Milestone Alert!Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more. | india has largely been an importer of new and innovative products. but it has lacked the capital allocation and the soft infrastructure for innovation. a fair number of our talented scientists and technologists look to emigrate. this has contributed to the boom in IT and business process management (BPM) outsourcing. IT and BPM services exported from india over the last 25 years have now grown to a staggering $200bn per year. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/business/chinas-belt-and-road-plan-is-getting-lashed-by-coronavirus/articleshow/74499725.cms | Services Sector Boost: GDP Expansion Seen at 6.7% in Q2 The Indian economy likely expected 6.7% in the July-September quarter, according to a median forecast of 10 economists polled by ET, boosted by a strong performance by the services sector.
Telecom Sector gets Wrong Signal from Direct-to-Mobile Telecom operators, chip makers, network providers and handset makers have strongly opposed any hurried decision on a proposed idea to beam TV content directly to mobile phones without a cellular data connection, as the technology is still immature. | services sector expected to boost economy by 6.7% in the July-September quarter. strong performance by the services sector boosted the economy by 6.7%. telecom operators, chip makers, network providers and handset makers opposed idea. proposed idea to beam TV content directly to mobile phones without a cellular data connection. back to mail online home. back to the page you came from. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/policy/defence-has-just-got-more-firepower-thanks-to-aatmanirbhar-bharat-5286921.html | The contours of India’s latest efforts to boost indigenous defence production have Make in India written all over. Measures laid out by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman last Saturday include banning the import of weapon systems that can be made in the country, corporatising the beleaguered Ordnance Factory Boards (OFBs) and raising Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in defence manufacturing to 74 percent from 49 percent.
These weapons acquisition plans — part of the Rs 20 lakh crore stimulus package for re-starting an economy reeling under the COVID-19 stranglehold—are in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s idea of building an Aatmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India).
By all accounts, the catalogue of prohibited arms imports is to get longer every year depending on fresh inputs from the armed forces. “We will notify a list of weapons and platforms for ban on their imports and fix deadlines to do it,” said Sitharaman. These platforms must be bought only from domestic companies and not from foreign firms and the spares for these weapons must also be manufactured indigenously. To facilitate this, the government intends to make a separate budget provisioning for domestic capital procurement.
“This will help reduce a huge defence import bill,” Sitharaman noted. It is not clear, though, how the government will revamp the scores of OFBs which are under fire for producing inferior armaments including artillery shells. The minister, however, ruled out privatising them and indicated overhauling their management instead so that they could be listed on the stock market. And since the steep increase in the FDI cap in arms manufacturing falls under the automatic route, it does away with the need for government sanction.
These reforms could not be happening sooner, considering India’s dubious tag of being one of the biggest arms importers in the world. In fact, the latest report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute lists the US, China and India — in that order — as the world’s three biggest military spenders in 2019. Russia and Saudi Arabia occupy the fourth and fifth spots, respectively.
The irony is that, despite this, India continues to lag many other countries in its actual military spending. Set against its gross domestic product (GDP), India’s defence expenditure remains at the bottom of the list of big military spenders. The country’s latest defence budget, in fact, hovers below the 1.6 percent mark of GDP — the lowest since the Sino-Indian conflict of 1962. It is hard to explain why a country, whose economy grew at around 7 per cent annually till recently, cannot afford to spend even 2 per cent of its GDP on national security. Tiny Singapore, with a population of about five million, has a defence budget that accounts for 5 percent of its GDP!
The new measures announced by the government will go a long way in reducing India’s overdependence on imported military hardware: an Achilles’ heel of the Indian military. For the effort to succeed, however, it is important for all three services to change entrenched mindsets. For instance, the chief reason for the military’s preference for imports has to do with services qualitative requirements (SQRs): specific conditions that must be met before new weapon systems are accepted.
Most of the time, unrealistic SQRs are quoted which cannot be met by state or local private companies and, as a result, the advantage passes to foreign vendors. It is high time the armed forces stopped flagging concerns about SQRs needlessly and approved equipment produced locally even if all the SQRs are not met, provided, of course, there is no compromise on military capability.
Now that policymakers have redefined defence procurement with a focus on indigenisation, building a military-industrial complex in the country no longer seems like a pipedream. Along with a long-term integrated perspective plan -- to keep the industry informed in advance about the military’s requirements -- this will help unfold a new road map for modernising India’s armed forces.
Prakash Chandra is former editor of the Indian Defence Review. He writes on aerospace and strategic affairs. Views are personal. | measures laid out by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman last Saturday include banning the import of weapon systems that can be made in the country. corporatising the beleaguered Ordnance Factory Boards (OFBs) and raising Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in defence manufacturing to 74 percent from 49 percent. the latest report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute lists the US, China and India — in that order — as the world’s three biggest military spenders in 2019. | Positive |
https://www.financialexpress.com/market/share-market-today-live-updates-sensex-nifty-rupee-vs-dollar-moodys-cuts-india-growth-forecast-sebi-franklin-templeton-crude-oil-coronavirus-covid-19-economic-stimulus-lockdown-april-29-wednesday/1942773/ | Share Market News Today | Sensex, Nifty, Share Prices Highlights: Domestic equity market benchmarks BSE Sensex and Nifty 50 index ended the session with nearly 2 per cent gains on Wednesday. The 30-share index Sensex rose 726 points from day’s low during the trade and settled at 32,720, up 605 points. While the broader Nifty 50 index hit day’s high of 9,599 in the intraday session. It ended the session at 9,553, up 173 points or 1.84 per cent. As many as 23 Sensex stocks finished the trade in green with HDFC as the top gainer, up 6.55 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, M&M, HDFC Bank and State Bank of India (SBI). On the other hand, the pack of laggards was led by Axis Bank, down 3.63 per cent. Asian Paint, Hindustan Unilever (HUL), Titan and IndusInd Bank were among other losers on the Sensex. Barring Nifty FMCG and Nifty Pharma, all the sectoral indices ended the session in positive territory. Nifty Metal index was top sectoral gainer with a growth of 3.74 per cent, led by SAIL, Hindalco Industries and Jindal Steel.
Moody’s Investors Service on Tuesday slashed India’s growth forecast to 0.2 per cent for the 2020 calendar year from the earlier projection of 2.5 per cent released in March. Stating that the economic costs of shutdown of the global economy are accumulating rapidly, Moody’s in its Global Macro Outlook 2020-21 (April 2020 Update) projected that all G-20 advanced economies would contract by 5.8 per cent in 2020. | the 30-share index Sensex rose 726 points from day’s low during the trade and settled at 32,720, up 605 points. while the broader Nifty 50 index hit day’s high of 9,599 in the intraday session. as many as 23 Sensex stocks finished the trade in green with HDFC as the top gainer, up 6.55 per cent. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/markets/daily-voice-sun-pharma-blue-dart-and-relaxo-buy-ideas-for-coming-week-sacchitanand-uttekar-5771761.html | live bse live
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The upside looks limited, as of now, it is ideal for investors to ramp up their exposure to defensives. Meanwhile, post the sharp upward movement, traders should avoid leverage and focus on stock-specific longs due to the overbought state of the indices, Sacchitanand Uttekar – DVP – Technical (Equity), Tradebulls Securities, said in an interview with Moneycontrol’s Kshitij Anand.
Edited excerpts:
Q) A week powered by bulls which pushed Nifty beyond 11,600 levels. What led to the price action in the week gone by?
A) Sharp inflows and strong global sentiments have indeed helped our market to push beyond 11600 levels on the Nifty. The ongoing rally got further steam due to its short-covering based move ahead of its August F&O series expiry.
Announcements from the government on the relaxation of GST norms for specific sectors industries & goods etc. helped to boost the existing positive sentiments for the broad-based rally to continue.
Q) September series rollover data suggest bulls will most likely remain in control. What are the important levels that one should track in September? Can Nifty50 touch 12,000 levels in this expiry?
A) The Nifty September series commenced on a high note as market-wide rollover stood at almost 89% vs 87.85% with strong rollovers in both the indices as compared to their 3 months average.
The highlight throughout the August series was the FII action, which seems to continue in the September series as well.
The long-short ratio has jumped towards 75 percent indicating strong aggressive longs to be continued by the FII. Options bounds as of now state a likely range of 12000-11000 as 11000 PE strike commands the highest OI within the chain.
While 11500 is expected to be the mid-point of the range as denoted by the upper end of the rising trend line of the Broadening formation & reaffirmed by the OI concentration of PE & CE positions respectively.
Technically, the recent breakout from the ongoing ‘Broadening formation’ could see an extended towards 11800-12000 zone.
Since the rising trend line from 11550 levels of this Expanding/Broadening formation is also progressing along with the trend, any failure of the current breakout could be arrested in case the index again slips below 11450 from hereon.
With its daily RSI trending heading upwards, it is ideal to assume that despite the overbought state, the up move could continue until a reversal formation is witnessed.
Since upside looks limited as of now it is ideal for investors to ramp up their exposures into defensives while post the sharp upward movement traders should avoid leverage, and focus on stock-specific longs due to the overbought state of the indices.
Long Short positions for the current series could provide the necessary edge as upside from hereon could be restricted.
Q) In terms of sectors, action was in financials with banks taking the lead in terms of sectoral gainers followed by realty and auto. What led to the price action? In the coming week do you think Metals would be in limelight?
A) Banks remained under pressure compared to the rest of the markets for a substantial period while during the recent move there was a clear sign of the baton been passed on to them for the final sprint as its constituents too are witnessing a sharp catch-up rally.
Expectations that moratorium might not get extended beyond 31 August and growth seen in the loan books indicates that economic recovery is gradually underway.
Also, many of the banks have raised capital as they are preparing to boost their balance sheet early to play it safe in case of NPAs rise post the moratorium period, which has reaped them some early brownie points.
Raising of capital, economic recovery, and uncertainty regarding moratorium out of the way has been helping the sector catch up with other sectors.
Auto stocks have seen a run-up in anticipation of some relaxation in GST rates. Post lockdown recovery which happened in June has sustained in July and many of the auto ancillary makers are saying that they have a good order book for September.
We might also see a slight improvement of demand in the festive season and so all these developments have resulted in the upward movement of the auto as well as auto ancillary companies.
All the above factors more or less look priced in now as the sector could await for some fresh triggers going forward into the festive season.
Temporary stamp duty cut has changed the prospect and sentiment of realty companies especially the ones which have are focused in metro cities.
Construction companies are starting to see a lot of action on the upside as the announcement serves as yet another calling for fresh home buyers on an existing lowest borrowing rates & tax spos been laid by the government in the ongoing fiscal.
With reviving demand in China and Europe, metal stocks are looking good.
Selective outperformance had been expected & most of it now looks delivered as the Metal index saw relatively weak rollovers. Technically too it has now placed in close proximity of its long term declining resistance trend line, while its key constitutes have started displaying signs of exhaustion & reversals on their short term time scales.
Q) Mid & smallcap index has wiped out losses for the year 2020 compared to Sensex, or Nifty which still trade in the red. What is leading to optimism, and what are the factors which could steal the thunder for broader markets?
A) Many mid and small-cap stocks have registered three-digit gains since March lows while even the tail-enders within the sectors have been delivering double-digit gains since the last few weeks.
It looks like liquidity is now chasing growth instead of being risk-averse where participants poured liquidity into safe large caps. Mid-cap and small-cap space are likely to benefit when economy recovers fully and demand returns to normalcy.
Right now we are starting to see widespread recovery and so mid-cap and small-caps saw their mojo getting back purely based on liquidity rotations.
Any dent in sentiment or withdrawal of foreign funds from our market could steal the thunder for broader markets.
Q) What is your call on the rupee which touched 6-month high? How will it impact sectors and FII flows?
A) The Indian rupee has hit its 6 month high backed by robust foreign inflows (Approx. Rs 18141 cr month till date) and strength in our equity markets. One of the reasons rupee has appreciated sharply in recent time is the absence of OMO operations into dollar buying by RBI.
Usually, RBI supports rupee by increasing its foreign reserves whenever rupee appreciates. US Dollar’s weakness has also helped rupee in gaining strength.
Strong rupee would aid Indian exporters as our economy is struggling to remain competitive due to already slowing demand worldwide. It would also benefit the MNC & defensive stocks which are yet to get their share of the limelight.
Q) Please share 3-5 trading ideas for the coming week with a time horizon of 3-4 weeks.
A) Here is a list of five stocks which traders could consider for the next 3-4 weeks:
Sun Pharma: Buy| LTP: Rs 555| Target: Rs 610| Stop Loss: Rs 520| Upside 10%
The Pharma sector witnessed strong rollovers including Sun Pharma. Strong sectoral strength along with fresh breakout from a ‘Flag formation’ indicates the continuation of its existing up move.
The pattern target rests around 610 zone. Hence, fresh longs could still be added even on declines up to Rs 545 with a stop below Rs 520.
BlueDart Express: Buy| LTP: Rs 2250| Target: Rs 2630| Stop Loss: Rs 2040| Upside 16%
BlueDart Express has been trending lower after forming a high around 2015. In the last few months, the declining trend has been decelerating as its monthly RSI is also confirming a positive divergence.
The price structure looks like a ‘Falling Wedge’ which is about to witness a breakout. Usually falling wedge pattern occurrence in a declining trend is leading evidence of a bottoming trend.
Traders as well as investors should take advantage of a good risk-to-reward opportunity which is been presented by the pattern now.
In the long run, we expect Bluedart to witness an amplified up move towards Rs. 4180 once it closes above Rs. 2630.
Hence, long positions should be considered with a stop below Rs. 2040 even for positional longs for 3-4 weeks for an initial target up to Rs.2630 /Rs 2830.
Relaxo Footwear: Buy| LTP: Rs 660| Target: Rs 705| Stop Loss: Rs 620| Upside 7%
Relaxo witnessed a firm volume and price breakout on the final day of the week. The convergence of its 5 & 20-Weeks EMAs indicates that the momentum is likely to continue forward as its weekly RSI has jumped at 54 & closed above the crucial mark of 50 with a good margin.
Trading longs to be maintained with a stop below Rs.620 for an initial target up to Rs.705 followed by Rs.740.
Amara Raja Batteries: Sell| LTP: Rs 735| Target: Rs 670| Stop Loss: Rs 774| Downside 9%
The occurrence of Tweezer Top formation is a sign of exhaustion & likely reversals. Amara Raja Batteries has been gradually progressing upwards within a small ranged channel since 03 June 2020 when it registered the highest RSI reading above 70 when the stock registered a high around Rs.680 zone.
A breakdown from this narrow ranged channel could deform the structure & push the stock towards its 200 Days EMA placed around Rs.670 zone.
Hence, the up move should be utilised for fresh shorts with an anticipation of a break down rally towards 670 with a stop above Rs.774 (WCLBS)
Jindal Steel: Sell| LTP: Rs 216| Target: Rs 190| Stop Loss: Rs 232| Downside 12%
Jindal Steel now looks overbought & ready for a meaningful corrective action within its ongoing uptrend.
The occurrence of ‘Engulfing Bearish’ formation on its Daily & Weekly time frames is a sign of concern & could lead to a healthy corrective wave towards Rs.190.
A pullback towards Rs. 220 zone would make the setup more productive with its stop been placed around Rs.232.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. | sharp inflows and strong global sentiments have helped our market to push beyond 11600 levels on the Nifty. the ongoing rally got further steam due to its short-covering based move ahead of its august F&O series expiry. the long-short ratio has jumped towards 75 percent indicating strong aggressive longs to be continued by the FII. | Positive |
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/world/sanofi-walks-back-after-saying-us-would-get-vaccine-first-5267451.html | French pharmaceutical group Sanofi ensured Thursday that it would make its COVID-19 vaccine, when ready, available in all countries, hours after the company's CEO said the United States will get first access.
Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson's comments prompted angry reaction from the French government.
Junior economy minister Agnes Pannier-Runacher said on Sud Radio “to us, it would be unacceptable that a country would get privileged access under the pretext of money reasons.”
In a statement released Thursday, Sanofi said “we have always been committed in these unprecedented circumstances to make our vaccine accessible to everyone.” Sanofi said its cooperation with US agency BARDA allows the company “to initiate production as early as possible.”
COVID-19 Vaccine Frequently Asked Questions View more How does a vaccine work? A vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. A vaccine not only induces immune response to protect people from any future COVID-19 infection, but also helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. Herd immunity occurs when a sufficient percentage of a population becomes immune to a disease, making the spread of disease from person to person unlikely. The good news is that SARS-CoV-2 virus has been fairly stable, which increases the viability of a vaccine. How many types of vaccines are there? There are broadly four types of vaccine — one, a vaccine based on the whole virus (this could be either inactivated, or an attenuated [weakened] virus vaccine); two, a non-replicating viral vector vaccine that uses a benign virus as vector that carries the antigen of SARS-CoV; three, nucleic-acid vaccines that have genetic material like DNA and RNA of antigens like spike protein given to a person, helping human cells decode genetic material and produce the vaccine; and four, protein subunit vaccine wherein the recombinant proteins of SARS-COV-2 along with an adjuvant (booster) is given as a vaccine. What does it take to develop a vaccine of this kind? Vaccine development is a long, complex process. Unlike drugs that are given to people with a diseased, vaccines are given to healthy people and also vulnerable sections such as children, pregnant women and the elderly. So rigorous tests are compulsory. History says that the fastest time it took to develop a vaccine is five years, but it usually takes double or sometimes triple that time. View more Show
The Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority has funded the development of the vaccine.
Hudson had previously told Bloomberg news agency that the US would get first access to the French company's COVID-19 vaccine.
“The US government has the right to the largest pre-order because it's invested in taking the risk," he said.
Sanofi is pushing for “similar measures” to be taken in the European Union to accelerate vaccine development and access to the population.
“We are having very constructive conversations with the EU institutions and the French and German government among others,” the statement writes.
Follow our full coverage of the coronavirus pandemic here. | french pharmaceutical group Sanofi ensures it will make COVID-19 vaccine available. company's CEO said the united states will get first access to the vaccine. a vaccine works by mimicking a natural infection. a vaccine helps quickly build herd immunity to put an end to the pandemic. a vaccine is a vaccine that is given to healthy people and vulnerable sections. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/latest/trends/men-in-north-and-west-india-spend-more-on-grooming-than-south-and-east/story/390471.html | At a time when the economy is facing a serious consumption slowdown and FMCG head honchos are complaining about growth stalling, the one segment that has been showing impressive growth is male grooming.
As per a report by Nielsen, the Rs 5,000-crore male grooming segment has grown by 12.3 per cent compared to 9.4 per cent last year. In fact, the last one year has seen the launch of 177 new male grooming products.
A largely urban trend, especially popular among men in the North and West (30 per cent and 28 per cent of men in North and West, respectively invest in male grooming products, while in the South and East it is relatively lower at 23 per cent and 19 per cent, respectively), Indian men are not just investing on traditional shaving creams and razors (which continues to contribute about 53 per cent of the male grooming basket), but have also started indulging in a variety of other products in the hand and body category such as body butters, wax and face washes, especially targeted at men.
This category contributes 41 per cent (Rs 2,100 crore market) to the sales and is growing at 17 per cent. However, the category that is growing the fastest at 20.4 per cent is men's hair care, despite being a Rs 300-crore market. Here, the maximum social media chatter (almost one-fourth share of voice) happens around beards.
Beard and moustache care products in the form of oil, wash and wax have become a topic of discussion on social media and companies are going all out to innovate in this category. This also explains why the likes of Marico have invested in start-ups such as Beardo.
Social media chatter on beards and other male grooming products has also led companies to introduce male grooming gift packs on e-commerce platforms and in modern retail stores, which have increased trial of these products, says the Nielsen Report. Companies are even coming up with smaller pack sizes of products such as deodorants and body gels to trigger frequent use, as men are also learning that grooming requires careful planning and dedicated time.
The metrosexual man, according to the report, is comfortable with following a grooming regimen to look their best continuously. Sales figures also suggest that men's face cleaning products and creams, alongside deodorants, are growing in modern trade five times as fast as the growth in traditional trade. "Men want to look younger and better and that is driving consumption," says Sharang Pant, Lead, Retailer Vertical, Nielsen South Asia.
Male grooming products are growing 1.5 times higher in modern retail stores and they are doing a lot to amplify the presence of these brands by keeping them at the beginning of the personal care aisle so that it doesn't miss the attention of consumers.
Also read: Indian men spend 42 minutes everyday on grooming, says report | the Rs 5,000-crore male grooming segment has grown by 12.3% compared to 9.4% last year. last one year has seen the launch of 177 new male grooming products. social media chatter on beards has led to companies introducing male grooming gift packs. a largely urban trend, especially popular among men in the north and west. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/markets/stocks/news/sensex-nifty-open-in-green-yes-bank-maruti-jump-up-to-3/articleshow/65804109.cms | NEW DELHI: Headline indices Nifty and Sensex registered strong opening on Friday , tracking firm cues from other Asian cues. Investors were keenly awaiting wholesale price index (WPI) data for August which was scheduled later for the day.Around 9:30 am, the BSE Sensex was 192 points, or 0.51 per cent, up at 37,909, while the Nifty50 was 73 points, or 0.65 per cent, up at 11,443. PowerGrid, YES Bank, Maruti and Vedanta were leading among sensex scrips, rising up to 3.31 per cent.Asian shares edged higher amid reports United States and China were looking to resolve a bitter trade dispute. A sharp interest rate hike by the Turkish central bank also raised hopes that EM policymakers were taking steps to control weakening macros. The report pushed the rupee's higher in the morning trade.Wipro, Infosys, Mahindra & Mahindra and TCS were in the red at the time of writing this report. Barring IT and teck, all sectoral indices were in the green on BSE.The rupee on Friday opened 49 paise higher at 71.70 against dollar after the US dollar fell to a near 1-1/2-month low against a group of currencies on Thursday. The American currency slipped after data showed that the US consumer prices increased less than expected in August, changing traders’ views on an acceleration in domestic inflation.India’s retail inflation decelerated to a 10-month low in August while factory output remained robust in July. Consumer inflation eased to 3.69 per cent in August, government data showed, falling below the RBI target of 4 per cent and July’s reading of 4.17 per cent. | headline indices Nifty and Sensex registered strong opening on friday. asian shares edged higher amid reports united states and china were looking to resolve a bitter trade dispute. rupee opened 49 paise higher at 71.70 against dollar after the us dollar fell to a near 1-1/2-month low against a group of currencies on Thursday. | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/markets/company-stock/reliance-industries-share-price-rises-stake-sale-jio-platforms-mubadala/story/405995.html | Reliance Industries share price hit a fresh 52-week high today after the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate announced the sale of 1.85 per cent stake in Jio Platforms to Abu Dhabi-based sovereign investor Mubadala for Rs 9,093.60 crore. This is the sixth fund infusion in RIL's digital unit in as many weeks amounting to a record Rs 87,655.35 crore investment to help it pare debt.
Share price of Reliance Industries gained 2.39% to hit a fresh yearly high of Rs 1,617 compared to the previous close of Rs 1579.95 on BSE. The large cap stock hit a fresh 52-week low of Rs 867 on March 23, 2020. Since then, the stock has gained 86.50% on BSE.
Reliance Industries stock has gained 9% in the last 5 days. On Nifty, the stock gained 3.35% to Rs 1,474 compared to the previous close of Rs 1,426.75. Total 2.75 lakh shares changed hands on BSE amounting to turnover of Rs 44.10 crore. Market cap of the firm rose to Rs 10.08 lakh crore on BSE.
RIL stock price has gained 8.69% in one week and 9% in one month. It has gained 17.87% since the beginning of this year and risen 5.18% during last one year.
RIL stock trades higher than its 5 day, 20 day, 50 day, 100 day and 200 day moving averages. On Nifty, the stock gained 2.46% to hit a fresh 52 week high of Rs 1,618 against previous close of Rs 1579.80.
Abu Dhabi's Mubadala to invest Rs 9,093.60 cr in Mukesh Ambani's Jio Platforms
Jio Platforms has raised a cumulative Rs 87,655.35 crore from technology investors such as Facebook, Silver Lake, Vista Equity Partners, General Atlantic, KKR and Mubadala in less than six weeks.
Since announcement of Facebook's Rs 43,574-crore investment in Reliance Jio on April 22 which was the first among these investors, the RIL stock has gained 30.82%.
Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director of Reliance Industries, said Mubadala is one of the most astute and transformational global growth investors.
"Through my longstanding ties with Abu Dhabi, I have personally seen the impact of Mubadala''s work in diversifying and globally connecting the UAE''s knowledge-based economy. We look forward to benefitting from Mubadala''s experience and insights from supporting growth journeys across the world," Ambani said.
RIL share price gains 2% after firm raises Rs 84,000 crore through rights issue
Mukesh Ambani scores 5th cheque! KKR to invest Rs 11,367 cr into Jio Platforms | the sale of 1.85 per cent stake in Jio Platforms to mubadala for Rs 9,093.60 crore is the sixth fund infusion in as many weeks. the large cap stock hit a fresh 52-week low of Rs 867 on march 23, 2020. since then, the stock has gained 86.50% on BSE. RIL stock price has gained 8.69% in one week and 9% in one month. | Positive |
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/sme-sector/etrise-top-msmes-ranking-reconnect-energy-is-using-ai-and-automation-to-transform-energy-markets/articleshow/78885286.cms | As a rapidly industrialising economy, India has an enormous appetite for energy and power, which are critical for keeping its factories and plants operational. Given the various limitations of non-renewable energy sources, the Indian government has been betting big on the enormous untapped potential of renewable energy (RE) in the country. And the results of the government’s recent thrust are slowly becoming clear.Today, India ranks third on renewable energy investment and plans, according to British Business Energy. It’s no surprise that the country, whose RE capacity had crossed 84 gigawatts (GW) mark by the end of November last year, aims to have 175 GW of installed renewable electricity capacity by 2022. For private players like Bengaluru-based REConnect Energy , there are significant opportunities to be grabbed.Incorporated in 2009, and now led by Vishal Pandya (36) and Vibhav Nuwal (42), the company offers several solutions to support what it calls ‘grid Integration’ of stakeholders in the renewable energy segment. Noteworthy is its predictive analytics-based solutions that are aimed at arresting variability associated with renewables, making renewable energy generation more grid friendly. Further, its marketplace based solutions are specifically designed to accelerate renewable energy procurements among Commercial & Industrial (C&I) Consumers, democratising access to clean energy.“We started REConnect to provide a one-stop solution to renewable energy generators and large consumers/ distribution companies to facilitate the trading of indigenous RECs certificates. It has also created a Digital Energy platform - GRIDConnect , to enable electric utilities (generation, transmission, distribution) to optimise grid management and asset management,” says Ramukar K, Director (Markets), REConnect Energy.So far, the firm’s unique platform has empowered 12 electric utilities to the tune of about 65 GW of RE assets across India. This, it says, has done by helping them optimise renewable energy integration to the grid, minimising imbalance costs pertaining to renewables, and optimising energy dispatch and smart asset management.“Today, we have over 2000 clients, including Independent Power Producers (IPPs) and electric distribution and transmission companies,” says Ramkumar, adding that the firm's clientele includes Adani, Renew, NTPC, Siemens, Mahindra Susten, MSETCL, among others.Business has been brisk, and the company clocked revenue of Rs 25 Crores in FY 2019-20. With a 100 plus strong team, it has been growing at a CAGR of 45% over the last five years. At the ETRISE Top MSMEs Ranking , REConnect was adjudged the joint winner in the India’s Top Performing MSMEs category.To view the entire list of India's Top Performing MSMEs, click here Despite the accolades, the going has not been easy. Ramkumar says policy uncertainties, coupled with fast-changing market dynamics, have been the key bottlenecks. According to him, there is a “constant disconnect” between the central and state policies leading to disputes around tariffs and curtailment of renewables. He is of the view that the non-implementation of renewable energy targets across many large states severely affects the entire value chain (comprising players in generation, transmission and distribution). And often, this issue cripples the performance of not just technology companies active in the segment, but also of service providers in the value chain, he opines.To view the entire list of India's Fastest Growing MSMEs, click here However, buoyed with the firm’s recent growth, Ramkumar reveals the team’s next target is to grow GRIDConnect as a horizontal platform enabling efficiencies for electric utilities by integrating renewables, electric vehicles, energy storage devices and smart meters through applied AI , IoT and automation.Download the Top MSMEs Ranking e-Handbook. Click here | india ranks third on renewable energy investment and plans. aims to have 175 GW of installed renewable electricity capacity by 2022. 'grid integration' of stakeholders in the renewable energy segment is key.'renew' has empowered 12 electric utilities to the tune of 65 GW of RE assets across india.'renew' has a'renew' rating of 'outstanding' and 'excellent' | Positive |
https://www.businesstoday.in/union-budget-2020/news/union-budget-2020-highlights-income-tax-section-80c-fm-nirmala-sitharaman/story/395062.html | Highlight89:FM Sitharaman cuts short her Budget speech after feeling unwell towards fag end#
Highlight88:'Vivad se Vishwas' scheme for direct tax payers whose appeals are pending at various forum, says FM#
Highlight87:Health cess on import of medical equipment imposed in Budget#
Highlight86:To ease allotment of PAN, new process of instantly allotting PAN through Aadhaar will be brought#
Highlight85:FM proposes scheme to bring down litigation in direct taxation scheme; 4.83 lakh direct cases pending in various appellate forums#
Highlight84:Govt extends additional Rs 1.5 lakh tax benefit on interest paid on affordable housing loans to March 2021#
Highlight83:Deferment of tax payment by employees on ESOPs from startups by five years proposed#
Highlight82:FM says have removed 70 exemptions, deductions with a view to further simplify tax regime#
Highlight81:Concessional tax rate of 15 pc extended to power generation companies#
Highlight80:100% tax concession to sovereign wealth funds on investment in infra projects proposed#
Highlight79: Health cess on import of medical equipment imposed in Budget#
Highlight78: Rs 40,000 crore per annum will be revenue foregone from new income tax rates for individuals, says FM#
Highlight77: A person earning Rs 15 lakh per anum and not availing any deductions will pay Rs 1.95 lakh tax in place of Rs 2.73 lakh now: FM#
Highlight76: New tax rates will apply for those who don't avail income tax deductions, others can opt for old rates, says FM#
Highlight75: For income between Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7.5 lakh: 10%, Rs 7.5 to Rs 10 lakh: 15%, Rs 10 lakh to Rs 12.5 lakh: 20%, Rs 12.5 to Rs 15 lakh: 25%. For income above Rs 15 lakh, same rates will apply#
Highlight74: FM announces new rates of income tax#
Highlight73:Fiscal deficit pegged at 3.8% in current fiscal and 3.5% in next, says FM#
Highlight72: Nominal GDP growth rate for 2020-21 estimated at 10%#
Highlight71: Govt to sell part of its stake in LIC via IPO, says FM#
Highlight70: India will host G20 Presidency in 2022. Rs 100 crore to be allocated for making preparations for this historic occasion, where India will drive global economic agenda, says FM#
Highlight69: Insurance for deposit limit in banks increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 5 lakh per depositor, says FM#
Highlight68: Govt fully committed to supporting new UTs of J&K and Ladakh; allocation of Rs 30,757 crore for 2020-21 for Jammu and Kashmir and Rs 5,958 crore for Ladakh#
Highlight67: Delhi-Mumbai Expressway will be completed by 2023, says Nirmala Sitharaman#
Highlight66: Taxpayer charter to be introduced under law, says FM#
Highlight65: National security is the top priority of the govt, says FM#
Highlight64: Rs 4,400 crore allocated for clean air schemes#
Highlight63: Rs 2,500 crore allocated for tourism promotion#
Highlight62: I propose to provide Rs 35,600 crore for nutrition related programmes for 2020-21#
Highlight61: Finance Minister proposes to set up a national Police university and a national forensic science university#
Highlight60: Oil and Natural Gas: Proposed to expand from 16K Km to 27K Km, the Gas Grid. Transparent price discovery to be evolved#
Highlight59: 100 more airports to be developed by 2024 to support the UDAN scheme#
Highlight58: Urban local bodies across the country to provide internships for young engineers for a period of up to one year#
Highlight57: Rs 2.83 lakh crore have been allocated for agriculture and irrigation#
Highlight56:Rs 99,300 crore for education sector in 2020-21 and Rs 3,000 crore for skill development#
Highlight55:India to launch National Technical Textile Mission to propel itself global leader in textiles production#
Highlight54:Scheme proposed for encouraging manufacturing of mobile phones, electronic equipment and semi-conductor packaging#
Highlight53:Investment Clearance Cell to set up through a portal, will provide end-to-end facilitation, support and information on land banks#
Highlight52:Rs 3.6 lakh crore allocated for Jal Jeevan Mission to ensure piped water in every household, says FM#
Highlight51:Total allocation for swachhbharat is around Rs 12,300 crore for this year#
Highlight50:Our government is committed to ODFPlus, in order to sustain ODF behaviour and to ensure no one is left behind, says FM#
Highlight49:Will set up Kisan rail so that farm goods can be quickly transported across the country, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman#
Highlight48:Viability gap funding window to be set up to cover hospitals, with priority given to aspirational districts that don't have hospitals empanelled under Ayushman Bharat, says FM#
Highlight47:Youth and fishery extension work to be enabled by rural youth as Sagar Mitras, forming 500 fish farmer producing organizations#
Highlight46:Fish production to be raised to 200 lakh tonnes by 2022-23#
Highlight45:Framework for development, management and conservation of marine fishery resources to be put in place#
Highlight44:NABARD Refinancing Scheme to be further expanded, agri credit target for the year 2020-21 has been set at Rs 15 lakh crore#
Highlight43:These measures are among the 16 action points underlined by the FM#
Highlight42:FM Nirmala Sitharaman announces doubling of milk capacity from 53.3 million metric tonnes to 108 million metric tonnes by 2025#
Highlight41:We will encourage balanced use of all fertilisers, a necessary step to change the incentive regime which encourages excessive use of chemical fertilizers#
Highlight40:Budget 2020 is to boost the income of people and enhance their purchasing power, says FM#
Highlight39:Farm markets need to be liberalised, farming need to be made more competitive, hand-holding of farm-based activities need to be provided, sustainable cropping patterns and more tech needed#
Highlight38:Farmers to be allowed to set up solar units on barren/fallow lands; supply power to grids#
Highlight37:FM says comprehensive measures for 100 water-stressed districts being proposed#
Highlight36:Central govt's debt has come down to 48.7% in March, 2019 from 52.2% in March, 2014, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman#
Highlight35:Govt uplifted 271 million people out of poverty, says FM#
Highlight34: We shall strive to bring Ease Of Living to every citizen#
Highlight33: Govt committed to double farm income by 2022, says FM#
Highlight32: Budget woven around three prominent things: Aspirational India, economic development and humane society, says FM#
Highlight31: GST was historic which abolished numerous taxes, though its chief archtitect is not with us, says FM#
Highlight30: Nirmala Sitharaman says India is now the fifth largest economy of the world#
Highlight29: FM says inflation well contained, banks recapitalisation steps taken for the formalisation of economy#
Highlight28: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says fundamentals of Indian economy are very strong#
Highlight27: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman starts her budget speech in Lok Sabha#
Highlight26: Union Cabinet approves Budget 2020, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to present budget in Lok Sabha shortly#
Highlight25: Investors and companies are hoping for rollback of long-term capital gains tax, relief to real estate sector lower income tax and push for rural demand#
Highlight24: Modi govt may raise spending on infrastructure and offer some tax incentives aiming to get growth back up from its lowest in a decade#
Highlight23: Govt may allocate Rs 1.90 lakh crore for food subsidies, though the food ministry has sought more than Rs 2 lakh crore to run the world's biggest food welfare programme#
Highlight22:Income tax amnesty may be announced after govt collected over Rs 35,000 crore from an amnesty this year to settle tax disputes on service and factory gate duties#
Highlight21:Economists in a Reuters poll predicted the govt would set a deficit target of 3.6% of GDP for 2020/21, up from 3.3% targeted for the current year#
Highlight20:FM is expected to announce plans to spend over Rs 102 trillion on roads, ports, airports, irrigation and other infrastructure over the next five years#
Highlight19:Middle class expects FM to increase the preventive health check-up deduction limit to Rs 10,000 from the current Rs 5000#
Highlight18:FM Nirmala Sitharaman reaches Finance Ministry with 'Bahi Khata' in red cloth. MoS Finance Anurag Thakur and team also there#
Highlight17: On Friday, govt predicted economic growth will rise to 6% to 6.5% in the fiscal year beginning April 1#
Highlight16: Analysts for ensuring single-window clearances for businesses and removing tax roadblocks for easing business sentiment#
Highlight15: Analysts say there is high probability that the fiscal deficit target of 3.3% for current fiscal will not be met#
Highlight14:Government is expected to make major expenditure announcements in the Budget to bail out the economy#
Highlight13: Government may raise the public provident fund threshold from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh#
Highlight12:Govt is considering a separate segment under Section 80C for tax exemptions of up to Rs 50,000 under National Savings Certificate#
Highlight11: Finance ministry plans to permit tax exemptions of up to Rs 2.5 lakh for savings under Section 80 C#
Highlight10:Real estate players have called for abolition of stamp duty or its incorporation under GST#
Highlight9: Reduction in income tax limits boost real estate sector as it will increase disposable income of buyers#
Highlight8: Market participants for scrapping of LTCG tax on equity investment or extending the holding period from one year to two years with nil tax#
Highlight7:Govt is expected to raise current limit of standard deduction from Rs 50,000 to Rs 75,000#
Highlight6:Reintroduction of medical reimbursement and travel allowance exemption is one of key demands for salaried class#
Highlight5:Slippage in fiscal deficit target from earlier estimates of 3.3% is expected in Budget#
Highlight4:FM walks on a tight rope to ensure balance between industry expectations and fiscal consolidation#
Highlight3:Relief in income tax is likely to be announced in Union Budget 2020#
Highlight2:Narendra Modi government to present Budget 2020 in Parliament today#
Highlight1:Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her second consecutive Union Budget in Parliament today# | Vivad se Vishwas' scheme for direct tax payers whose appeals are pending at various forum proposed. 'i am a big fan of the idea,' says FM. 'i am a big fan of the idea,' says FM. 'i am a big fan of the idea,' says FM. | Positive |
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